Yontouryuu
by CodeNameZimbabwe
Summary: ..."Zoro, do you even like girls?" Luffy asked suddenly. Zoro's eyebrows shot up. "H-Huh?"...When the Straw Hats encounter an enemy from their past, their first mate will be forced to choose between his desires and his destiny...ZoroxTashigi...Enjoy!
1. Smoke?

**A/N****: **Hello everyone! Jeez I just can't stop writing One Piece stuff these days! And wowww! This one's gonna have more than one chapter too! *faints* I was just really in the mood to write Zoro, and since I'm a huge ZoroxTashigi fan….VOILA! The title means, "Four Swords" in Japanese. Or it might actually be "Four Sword STYLE" now that I think about it….dangit…. Oh well, just pretend it's "Four Swords" I guess. ^^; AND NOW….ON TO THE STORY!

~~(^^^)~~

_He could feel it. His swords were ready. His first encounter with his opponent back at the stupid love-cook's restaurant had been merely a warm-up, a practice round. He'd been reckless then, horribly unprepared, and had nearly paid for it with his life. Wincing at the memory, he shook it off, reminding himself it was only a scar on his past._

_ Now, after countless hours of training, it was his time to claim the title, his time to fulfill his destiny._

_Reaching over to clasp one of his swords, his muscles quivered in anticipation as he scanned the barren landscape for his opponent. A thick fog had descended, shrouding the land in an ominous mist, the sun just barely peeking through to illuminate the whiteness._

_ The faintest movement was heard behind him, and he was ready in an instant, a silent and natural transition._

_ He smirked as a figure began to emerge through the fog._

_ "Roronoa Zoro….looking confident and high-strung as ever I see…"_

_ "Heh, I could say the same for you! I've been waiting for you….Mihawk."_

_ The world's greatest swordsman stepped into full view, a sly grin spreading across his face. Crossing his arms, he studied Zoro._

_ "I do hope you are better prepared this time, Roronoa. I don't tend to spare anyone more than once."_

_ Zoro chuckled. "I didn't think you would. I'm ready for you. I've gotten stronger. Hate to break it to you, but I will take your title." With that, he clamped his teeth down on his third sword, readying himself and nodding for Mihawk to do the same._

_ However, his opponent simply stayed as he was, continuing to grin somewhat condescendingly back at him._

_ "I see you haven't changed much, boy. But what you must understand is that you are not the only one who has gotten stronger. Allow me to demonstrate!"_

_ But instead of reaching for his sword, Mihawk proceeded to whip off his cloak in one motion to reveal himself wearing a flowing, zebra-print dress, complete with high heels and gold jewelry._

_ Zoro gaped, his sword falling out of his mouth and clattering to the ground._

_ Mihawk chuckled menacingly before giving a twirl. "Ah, you like it? I feel I can move much more freely in my new battle garb! Go on! See if you can leave a mark on this!" He said, gesturing elegantly to his dress-clad frame._

_ Too sickened and utterly shocked to react, Zoro glanced down at his swords only to see that they had turned into a trio of squirrels, two of which were trying frantically to get out of his grasp._

_ "What the-?" He jumped in surprise, dropping the two remaining rodents and nearly falling on top of the third._

_ "What are you waiting for, Roronoa? Come at me! Or are you too afraid to strike this dashing designer garment? Hmm?" Mihawk continued to press him, that sly grin still creeping over his face. "Well, Zoro? Zoro? Oi, Zoro!..."_

"Zoro! Oi! Zoroooo! WAKE UP, YOU IDIOT!"

_WONK!_

Zoro's eyes shot open at the sudden pain as he yelped rather girlishly.

Wincing and holding his throbbing head, he sat up tentatively, blinking at the figure looming above him.

"Jeez, it's about time!" Nami growled in annoyance. "You sleep like a damn rock, Zoro! And it looks like you have the work ethic of one too!"

Still rubbing his head, Zoro glared at her. "The hell are you talking about? I was tryin' to sleep, sheesh!"

He blinked again, pushing the events of the awkward dream to the back of his mind, and saw that she was carrying a large laundry basket full of what appeared to be towels.

Propping the basket on her hip, she groaned in agitation before reaching in to grab one of said-towels and whipping it in his face.

"_This_ is what I'm talking about, you baka! I asked you days ago to clean up the crow's nest, but I go up there today and what do I find? Gross, sweaty towels and crap allover the place! The whole room smells like goddamn B.O.! Do you even wash the clothes you _wear_?" She cried, pulling his haramaki back and releasing it, causing it to snap painfully against his stomach. Then, realizing she'd come in contact with his potentially toxic clothing, she shuddered and wiped her hand on his arm.

"Jeez!" He scowled, slapping her hand away and peeling the towel off his face. Tossing it back into the basket, he crossed his arms. "It's none of your freaking business! Besides, I'm the only one who ever goes up there so who gives a damn anyway!"

"It's disgusting! Don't you have any sense of personal hygiene?"

"Well then here! I'll just take off all my clothes right now and you can wash them!"

"No way! I've already got enough of your nasty laundry to do!"

"Well then get to it, woman!"

"Fine!"

"Fine!"

At that, she turned on her heel and stomped across the deck, steam blowing from her ears.

"Witch….," he mumbled after her.

"Heard that!"

"Oh shut up….."

"Heard that too!" And she slammed the door behind her, yelling a now-muffled order at Sanji who had surely floated after her in a haze of love.

Zoro sighed and eased back against the mast with a yawn, eager to get some peace and quiet after that tirade. Closing his eyes, he shifted a bit, trying to get comfortable.

He frowned slightly, however, when some shuffling was heard close to him, followed by a few whispers.

"O-Oi, is he asleep again?"

"I dunno…."

"How could he sleep after that? Nami was so scary!"

"Yeah, but she made a SUPER good point!"

"Yohohoho! Maybe some music will wake Zoro-san up!"

He continued to frown as he tried to ignore the voices. If he slept through it, it'd be like it never happened.

Suddenly though, he felt a slight movement of air across his face, followed by a giggle, causing him to furrow his brow.

He opened his eyes a crack, then jolted at the sight of Luffy staring him down from approximately three inches away.

"Oi! What the-? What is up with you guys today?" Zoro scowled when Luffy began laughing jovially.

"Seriously….," he muttered, shifting uncomfortably as he noticed Usopp, Chopper, Franky, and Brook staring back at him too.

Luffy's laughter had ceased, and he was now looking intently at the swordsman with narrowed eyes, a puzzled expression on his face.

"Okay, what the hell! Why is everyone staring at me? It's freaking me out!" He exclaimed, feeling his ears getting hot.

"Zoro, do you even like girls?" Luffy asked suddenly.

Zoro's eyebrows shot up. "H-Huh?" he stammered.

"Do you like girls." Luffy repeated, crossing his legs as he blinked patiently at his first mate.

Zoro could feel the rest of his face heating up. "Of course I….why would you….I don't….huhhhh? What does this have to do with anything?"

"I think Luffy-san means because you argue a lot with Nami-san." Brook offered.

"That's true…." Usopp said with a smirk. "And you barely talk to Robin."

"Urghhhh….are you kidding me?" Zoro growled. "That's two people! That doesn't mean that-!"

He was interrupted as Luffy smacked his fist to his palm excitedly. "Hey guys! I remembered something! My brother told me once that when you fight with someone a lot, it's because you secretly love them! So that must mean he _really _loves Nami!" Luffy laughed at his revelation, causing Zoro's face to become even redder.

"I do not, you idiot!" he cried, his voice cracking slightly from embarrassment and anger. "And excuse me, but you fight with Nami a hell of a lot too, so obviously, _you_ must be in love with each other!"

Luffy paused mid-laugh and considered. "Hmmm….yeah maybe!" he said with a grin.

"Whoa hold on a second….y'know….Zoro fights with Sanji all the time too…." Usopp said, glancing at the others.

"SUGEEEE! So does that mean Zoro secretly loves Sanji too?" Chopper cried in a frenzy of amazed sparkles.

At this, Franky began to sob. "You know we won't judge you, man! Just come out and say it! You can tell us anything!"

"WHAAAAAATTT?" Zoro cried, his face now beet red. "Are you saying I'm-? NO WAY IN HELL AM I IN LOVE WITH SWIRLY BROW! How could you even _say_ that? Do I look g-?"

"Oi, then why's your face so red?" Usopp interrupted, pointing an accusatory finger at Zoro's tomato complexion.

"Huh? Uruse na! No it's not! Dammit, I like girls!" The swordsman growled.

Luffy blinked. "Oh, so you _do_ like Nami then."

"GAH! NO! I-!"

"Must be Robin…." Franky whispered into Luffy's ear, causing the captain to stifle a laugh.

"SHUT UP! STOP INTERRUPTING M-!"

"Oi!"

Everyone turned as Sanji emerged from the doorway to the living quarters.

"Hey," he said, leaning casually against the doorframe. "Nami-san told me to, quote, 'tell you filthy pigs that if you have any laundry, give it to her now while she's doing a load. Otherwise, you'll have to do it yourself. And if you don't know how, then screw you, 'cause you're no better than lazyass Zoro.'"

At this, Zoro shot a glare in the cook's direction. "What did you just call me?"

Sanji simply smirked. "Just repeating what Nami-san said…..lazyass…."

"Yeah, like hell you w-! Oi! There you go again, dartboard!"

"EHHH?"

Just as the two were about to lunge for each other, a collective guffaw erupted from the peanut gallery.

"Hey, look guys! They're fighting again!"

"Wowwww! It really _is_ a sign of their love!"

Luffy's manic giggling cut through the hushed commentary. "Watch this!" he said with a grin.

And with that, he shot out his arms to the feuding men, wrapping one around Zoro and the other around Sanji, trapping them in an inescapable death grip.

"Luffy! What the hell are you doing? Let us go!" The two wriggled and squirmed, unable to break free.

Luffy merely laughed, continuing to grin mischievously. "I can make them kiss, guys!"

"WHAT? NO NO NO NO NO!"

But despite the screams, protests, and death threats spewed in his direction, Luffy began to move the writhing couple closer and closer together until their lips were forced to meet, emphasized by a loud '_MWAH!'_ sound effect from their dear captain.

As if struck by a bolt of lightning, the two jolted away from the contact, eyes wide with shock, mouths gaping in a choked scream of terror.

Neither reacted when their bodies hit the deck, Luffy having released them as he and the rest of the crew were consumed with hysterical laughter.

Zoro and Sanji continued to lie there, unmoving, twitching and shuddering uncontrollably.

"Urgh, Sanji-kun! Where are you? You're supposed to be-!" Nami stormed up to the doorway, but paused when she came across the strange scene in front of her.

Robin appeared close behind. "Sanji?" She asked, puzzled, as the miserable blond began crawling towards the two women, tears streaming down his face.

"Nami-san! Robin-chan! Please forgive me! These lips were only meant for you!" He sobbed, taking hold of Nami's ankles and slamming his head into the deck repeatedly.

Nami shot a nervous glance at him. "Ummm…..I'm not even gonna ask…"

"Oi! Everyone! What is that?"

The crew jumped, startled by the sudden urgency of the voice. Apparently, having quelled his hysterics, Brook had moved to the edge of the ship and was pointing a bony finger at something in the distance.

The rest of the crew, save for Zoro and Sanji, quickly jumped up to look as well.

A thick, hazy fog appeared to be creeping across the water towards the ship, a seemingly odd occurrence considering the day's nice weather.

Usopp donned his goggles, studying the object closer. A minute later, he flipped them up and turned to his nakama with a frown.

"It looks like…..smoke!"

"Huhhh?"

~~(^^^)~~

He sat in his office, the air filled with the smothering smog puffing from his two burning cigars.

With a grin, he moved his gloved hands across his desk, spreading out a number of wanted posters. Chuckling to himself, he began to mark those he had annihilated with red x's. Soon, all but one had been marked.

He frowned, picking up the remaining paper, glaring intently at the smiling visage of Monkey D. Luffy.

"And yet, you're still out there…." He murmured softly, blowing out smoke.

Just then, the door to his office burst open, and in stumbled a tall, blue-haired woman with glasses.

"Commodore Smoker!" she cried, clutching her sword close to her chest.

"Urghhhh….." Smoker sighed, running a hand through his silver hair in aggravation. "What is it, Tashigi. You don't have to shout."

"Errr….I'm sorry, sir!" she replied, slightly breathless. "But you're needed up on deck! One of the watchmen has spotted an approaching pirate ship!"

Upon hearing this, his eyes flashed heatedly for a split second, then, giving a curt nod, he led the way out of the room.

The two moved down the long corridor, Tashigi having to jog slightly in order to keep up with Smoker's brisk pace.

"Isn't this exciting, Commodore?" she grinned. "We haven't seen much action in a while. I mean, I'm always training, gotta keep from getting rusty, but is that really what I'm sharpening my Shigure every week for? Training? I don't think so! Have you ever just wanted to knock some serious heads? Y'know, just a-!"

"Tashigi, do you ever stop talking?" He turned to shoot her an annoyed glance.

"Hehehe, well I-,"

"Commodore Smoker!" A marine called as the two emerged on deck. "We've identified the pirates, sir! It's the Straw Hats!" He informed with a salute.

Smoker raised his eyebrows. The Straw Hat crew? So far out on the Grand Line? Surely there was a mistake. But as he turned his gaze to the vast ocean, the tell-tale lion head of the _Thousand Sunny_ could be seen sailing a ways ahead of them.

Tashigi frowned. "The Straw Hats?..." Then she gasped slightly. "Zoro…" A look of intensity crossed her face as she gripped her sword instinctively.

Smoker nodded with a smirk. It seemed he'd underestimated the rubber rookie's potential.

"Keep them in our sights!" He ordered, puffing out smoke. "We're going to pay Mugiwara a visit….."

He raised a hand, and the ocean became shrouded in a smoky mist.

~~(^^^)~~

**A/N****: ** BAM! There's chapter one! This was just kind of an exposition chapter….the plot really starts moving next chapter. Ho man, hopefully I'll be able to update fairly quickly….four-day weekend coming up so that's promising! =D Hope you enjoyed it! ^_^


	2. Rescue

_**A/N**__**: **__ Gahhhh I __**knew**__ this would happen! Sheesh…sorry it took me so long to update…blame school for that… So yeah, I do not own One Piece; it belongs to the manga GOD, Eiichiro Oda, blah blah blah. YOSH! CHAPTER TWO! xD_

~~(^^^)~~

"Wait, smoke?" Sanji asked in disbelief, standing up and moving closer to the edge of the ship. "You can't be serious! It's gotta be just fog, right?" He frowned, squinting at the strange substance creeping over the waves.

"I dunno…." Usopp shrugged. "Looks pretty smoky to me."

"Urghhh….forget about that, guys!" Nami's aggravated voice cut through the confusion.

The crew turned to face her, slightly perturbed by the sudden alarm in her tone. However, one look at the tense navigator answered any question as to what was wrong.

Nami frowned, staring intently up at the sky. "….Do you guys feel that?..." she asked, lowering her gaze to the others, the wind whipping her hair across her face ominously. "There's a storm coming! And it's huge!"

~~(^^^)~~

"A storm?" Smoker grunted, removing his cigars from his mouth.

"Hai, sir!" The soldier nodded, glancing nervously at the growing waves. "I suggest we leave the Straw Hats for now and find a port to dock for the night. If you intend to keep up this smokescreen, these strong winds could cause us to get trapped in it as well!"

Smoker let out a heavy sigh, clenching his fists as he looked up at the tumultuous sky. The clouds were indeed churning, and the wind had picked up, blowing harshly as it ripped through the sail.

Any sane person would have recognized the hazards of the growing tempest. Any sane person would have found shelter. Any sand person would have known that there were a million ways for sailors to die in a storm at sea.

He smirked and glanced at Tashigi.

She nodded and gave a small smile. "I trust your judgment, Commodore!"

At that, he chuckled and turned back to the subordinate, who had been joined by several other nervous-looking marines.

"Stay the course, gentlemen! This storm could prove to be rather advantageous to our efforts here!"

He grinned despite the many protests from his advisors. Fixing his gaze on the dark horizon, he crossed his arms.

Didn't they realize that Monkey D. Luffy was _not_ just any sane person?

~~(^^^)~~

"Oi, look Nami!" Luffy cried as he climbed onto the ship's side railing, holding a support rope for balance. "Is that a whirlpool forming? Let's go ride it!" He laughed, holding his hat down on his head as the wind continued to blow fiercely.

"No, you moron!" Nami called from the upper deck. "We've got enough problems with this freakin' smokescreen surrounding us!...Can't see a thing…."

"Damn!" She swore as freezing rain began to fall heavily on the ship.

Nami looked around desperately at the unfolding chaos. Things didn't look good. Visibility was almost zero, the rain and smoke putting them at a huge disadvantage. The waves were growing bigger by the minute, and Nami swore again as a wall of water crashed onto the deck, sending the ship rocking precariously.

Panicking, she quickly grabbed onto the railing, holding on for dear life until the ship was somewhat steady. After a minute, she stood up warily and surveyed the scene before her.

Everyone was still onboard, including Luffy, who was still standing on the railing, laughing like a maniac. She smiled slightly and let out a sigh of relief. They were counting on her to lead the way. She'd done it before, and she'd do it again. She was their navigator, and she _would_ guide them through the storm.

"Alright, guys!" she called over the wind. "Unfurl the sails! Sanji! Steer! Franky, Usopp! Man the rudder! Everyone else! Make yourselves useful! We're getting out of here! And Luffy, for God's sake! Get off the railing! You're makin' me nervous!"

With a nod, everyone ran to their positions, including Luffy who begrudgingly stepped back onto the deck with a pout on his lips. It was common fact that Nami was _not_ to be messed with during a storm.

At least, it was common fact for everyone except Zoro, who had made himself _quite_ comfortable sprawled out on _Sunny_'s lawn, snoring away.

"Zoro! Wake up, you shithead! You're not sleeping through this!" Sanji cried as he sprinted past, giving the sleeping swordsman a solid kick in the side.

"Oi! What the-?" Jolting up and grabbing hold of Wadō, Zoro started to run after him, when, suddenly, he stopped, eyes growing wide as he stared out at the rough ocean.

"Urghhhh…Just our luck…." he muttered as he drew all three of his katanas. "Hey guys! Take a look! We've got company!"

The rest of the crew paused as well, following their first mate's gaze out to sea.

Cutting through the choppy waves with ease was a huge vessel, its looming sails revealing the Navy insignia.

And it appeared to be sailing directly towards the _Thousand Sunny_.

~~(^^^)~~

So they were actually going through with it. She'd said she trusted his judgment, but had she really meant it?

Tashigi sighed, her breath visible in the sudden cold. She reached up to wipe water off her glasses, only to have them become plastered with rain again a second later.

Clutching her Shigure closer, she stared intently ahead as they drew nearer to the Straw Hats.

She would finally get her rematch with Roronoa Zoro. He had caught her off-guard….._very_ off-guard during their first encounters in Logue Town and Alabasta. She had been weak and naïve to his strength, not to mention more than a little distracted by the deep intensity behind his dark eyes and-.

No. She shook her head. He was the enemy, a filthy pirate who didn't deserve to call himself a swordsman. Besides, he had hated her! Hadn't he yelled at her for looking like some dead girlfriend of his? He obviously had no respect for her; therefore, she would bestow the same amount (or lack thereof) on him.

"Oi!" The loud voice of a marine interrupted her thoughts.

"They've spotted us! Men, prepare for battle!"

"Ayyyye!"

Turning, Tashigi looked back over at Smoker, who was standing calmly amidst the frenzy of scrambling marines.

"Sir," she addressed, a determined expression on her face. "Permission to take out Roronoa Zoro on my own."

Slowly, he shifted his gaze, glancing at her from the corner of his eye.

"Tashigi, I don't know if you recall, but Roronoa is now a Supernova. He's a monster. As is Straw Hat. I think it's best if we stick together on this one. I don't want you screwing things up with a solo mission."

She rolled her eyes. "But, sir, I've been training! I've been waiting for this rematch since-!"

"No, Tashigi!" Smoker interrupted through clenched teeth. "I don't care how strong you think you've gotten; I can guarantee Roronoa's been training even more! He _will_ kill you. Stay away from him. That's an order!"

"Urgh, but Commodore-!"

"I said _no_!"

Letting out a groan of frustration, she narrowed her eyes at him before turning on her heel and storming away towards the living quarters. Thankfully, he didn't follow her as she pushed through the crowd, nearly slipping and falling on the rain-slick deck as the ship pitched.

Running a gloved hand through her now-soaking wet hair, she sighed. Was it because she was a woman? No. She was just as respected as any other officer, especially after her part in the arrest of Crocodile. She'd even gotten promoted for it! Then why did Smoker continue to doubt her competence?

She looked up again. Their ship was only a few hundred feet from the _Sunny_. The first cannons had fired, and the chaos of battle had begun.

She jolted as the sky lit up remarkably with a huge burst of lightning, followed closely by a tremendous clap of thunder.

It was reckless of Smoker to continue sailing during a storm of these proportions.

Then again, if _he_ could be reckless, then so could she. She would prove that she was just as capable as Zoro.

With that thought in mind, Tashigi raced to the edge of the ship, peering over the edge to where the lifeboats were secured. Glancing over her shoulder one last time, she clambered into the nearest one, and with a determined nod, slashed the support ropes with her sword, sending the boat crashing down to the churning waves below.

"Alright, Zoro! I'm comin' for ya…." Grabbing the oars, she began to row her way towards the _Thousand Sunny_. She smirked. The tide appeared to be in her favor, and she was soon extremely close to the ship. Bringing the dinghy around to the far side of _Sunny_, she tried to stay out of sight as she fumbled with the oars, her wet gloves causing them to slip from her grasp.

Frustrated, she pulled off one of her gloves, only to have it ripped from her hand by a strong gust of wind.

"Dammit!" she cried, paddling forward to try and rescue it from the waves.

She had almost reached it when, suddenly, she heard a strange whistling noise coming from behind her. It sounded like it was growing closer and closer by the second. Slowly, she turned around, and gasped at the sight of a cannonball flying directly towards her.

With no time to escape, she ducked down in the boat, covering her head with her hands.

_CRASH!_

There was an explosion of splintering wood as the rogue cannonball collided with the dinghy, sending Tashigi hurtling violently into the water.

Gasping, she broke the surface, trying desperately to stay afloat amidst the treacherous waves. With nothing to hold onto, she struggled to swim towards something, anything, but could only flail in one place as the current pushed her around.

Suddenly, she felt herself being sucked backwards as a huge swell approached her. Panicking, she tried to swim against it but to no avail.

The wave pulled her under, rolling and pushing her until it was impossible to tell which way was up.

Bubbles escaped from her mouth, and she choked, swallowing water. She slapped a hand to her mouth, pinching her nose shut in an attempt to keep herself from taking in more water, however, her lungs burned, and she could feel her strength ebbing.

_Commodore Smoker was right….I __**would**__ screw this up….._, she thought before everything went black, and she saw no more.

~~(^^^)~~

Zoro grunted as he touched back down on the deck, having slashed yet another cannonball in half.

"Jeez! They just keep coming!" He heard Sanji yell from his post at the steering wheel as he tried to maneuver the ship through the torrential downpour.

"Gomu Gomu no Fuusen!" Luffy cried as he deflected three more of the bombs from _Sunny_'s head.

Nami was shouting barely-heard orders through the craziness, and he caught Robin's eye as she knocked Chopper aside just in time, a flying bullet just mission the frantic reindeer. She glanced at him, a grim expression on her face as she ran off to assist the others.

Zoro groaned. "How the hell are we gonna get out of here…." He muttered to himself.

Just then, he heard the whistle of another cannonball nearby, followed by what sounded like an explosion of clattering wood.

Frowning, he raced to the rear of the ship to find the source of the noise.

"What the-?" What he saw surprised him.

That damn, klutzy Marine woman was floundering around in the water, her boat having apparently been blown apart by the cannonball.

He sighed, rubbing his temple with his thumb and forefinger. What had she been planning? A sneak attack? He could already feel a headache coming on. Just the thought of her made his head throb. Something about her was just so aggravating. Probably the fact that she looked so much like Kuina. It wasn't a bad thing; she was cute, he had to admit, as Kuina had been. But the fact that she acted just like her too? That unnerved him. Unnerved him to the point where he couldn't even speak in logical sentences.

"But…..why?" he asked, blushing slightly, realizing he'd spoken aloud. However, his face suddenly paled as he watched a large wave swallow her, her head disappearing beneath the water.

Zoro gripped the railing tightly, the rain pounding on him and his knuckles turning white as he stared intently at the site of her disappearance.

She wasn't coming back up.

"Shit," he swore, leaving his swords on the deck and diving into the water after her.

The cold pierced through him like a thousand knives but he ignored it, struggling to see in the dark water.

Why had he jumped in? She was the enemy, after all. He silently cursed his conscience as he continued to search for her. Let his conscience be his guide? Yeah, it would guide him right into a cold, watery grave, that's for sure.

Finally, he caught a glimpse of something. A glint of light bouncing off of…..the hilt of a sword.

She was sinking fast, the weight of her clothes and katana pulling her unconscious form deeper into the murky depths.

Without hesitation, Zoro swam down, his ears popping slightly from the water pressure as he grabbed Tashigi's waist, pulling her securely against him.

Now struggling to hold in air, he made quickly for the surface, gasping loudly as he broke it.

He glanced nervously at Tashigi, who was cold and deathly pale. He hoisted her up farther as the water level swelled, her head falling limply onto his shoulder.

"Don't die on me, okay? You clumsy woman…." He muttered as he slowly began making his way back to _Sunny_.

The sounds of the battle were still going on, and he was beginning to feel the effects of the cold as he reached the edge of the ship. There was no way the others would hear him if he called for help, so he slung Tashigi's left arm over his shoulders, holding her tightly against him and grabbed for a loose rope with his left hand.

Bracing his feet against the side of the ship, he proceeded to pull them up painstakingly with one arm. A minute later, he was about halfway, when, suddenly, Franky's voice came loudly from onboard.

"Alright, everyone ready? Brace yourselves! This is gonna be SUPERRRRR!"

"Hmm?" Zoro grunted. "What the hell is he-?"

"COUP DE BURST!"

Zoro's eyes widened. "WHAT? NO!"

But he could do nothing but hang on as the _Thousand Sunny_ shot forward like a rocket, soaring up into the sky, leaving a trail of smoke and the Marines far behind.

~~(^^^)~~

"Who knew their ship could fly….." Two marines grumbled to each other as they walked across the deck following _Sunny_'s flashy exit.

Their complaining was cut short, however, when the door to the captain's quarters slammed open, and Smoker stormed out.

"Where the hell is she?" he growled, puffing smoke into the humid air.

The storm had died down, and it was now only lightly drizzling, the sun peeking through the remaining clouds.

"S-Sir!" A young trainee scampered up to him, shakily saluting as he eyed Smoker warily. "Ensign Tashigi's not anywhere below-deck. A-And there's no sign of her up here either!"

"WHAT?" Smoker cried, his voice growing louder as his nostrils flared. "Are you telling me she just disappeared into thin air?"

"N-N-No, sir, I-!" The boy cringed as Smoker took a menacing step closer to him.

"Commodore Smoker! One of the lifeboats is missing!" The boy let out a sigh of relief as another marine grasped Smoker's attention.

"Hmm?" Smoker grunted as he moved to the side of the ship. There was indeed a lifeboat missing, and he groaned, rubbing the back of his neck anxiously. "Tashigi…..don't tell me you-."

But he stopped short, a look of disbelief coming over his face as he stared at something out at sea.

The shattered remains of the lifeboat were floating on the now-calm waves, and a lone purple glove was twirling swiftly behind it.

His eyes widened, and he dropped his cigars unknowingly.

"No." He uttered, frozen to the spot.

There was no way she could've…She couldn't have…He refused to believe that…..

"No!" He cried again, louder, as he clenched his fists. "Get divers out there! Right now! Go! I SAID GO, DAMMIT!"

Several marines scrambled away quickly, returning shortly with scuba gear and snorkels.

The search team entered the water, but Smoker continued to stand there, his clenched fists shaking slightly as he waited.

Ten minutes passed, and one of the divers popped up, removing his mask.

"C-Commodore, there's no sign of-."

"WELL THEN LOOK HARDER!" He ordered harshly, and t he marine submerged again submissively.

Smoker rubbed a hand over his tired face. They had to find her! She was his partner, his second-in-command. Sure, he teased her. Sure, he bossed her around. But that was only because he valued her as a student, an employee…a friend. If he hadn't cared about her, he would not have taken her under his wing in the first place. He needed her.

Never had he felt so helpless. It was the first time he had ever truly resented his devil fruit powers and his inability to swim.

Another fifteen minutes passed, and the entire search team appeared above the water.

"Sir, we're sorry…..we couldn't find anything…..she's…..gone…."

"URGH! NO! DAMMIT, TASHIGI!" Smoker cried, his fist slamming down onto the railing, sending a spider-web of fissures down the entire length of it as it cracked.

Breathing heavily, he dug his hands through his hair desperately, refusing to look at the divers as they clambered back onboard.

He knew it was his fault, though it killed him to admit it. He knew what she had been planning. That her deliberate disobedience of his order was an attempt to prove her self-worth. Even as he forbade her from going after Zoro, he knew she would do it anyway.

Any sane person would have known that there were a million ways for sailors to die in a storm at sea.

And yet, he had stood firm and kept sailing.

He flinched but didn't respond as a marine tapped him lightly on the shoulder.

"Sir….her glove….." he said sympathetically, holding out a hand.

Smoker turned slowly and took the glove from him, stroking it gingerly as he stared down at the drenched material.

"Your orders….Commodore?"

Looking up, he eyed his subordinates, but not with sorrow. With an intense rage.

"Find the Straw Hats. And kill them. Every last one of them!" He seethed quietly, shaking with sheer anger.

"But leave Roronoa Zoro for me. Mark my words, I will _murder_ that fucking bastard!"

~~(^^^)~~

_Sunny_ had touched back down, and Zoro groaned as he crawled back on-deck, still hauling Tashigi, his limbs quivering, breathing hard. He growled as sounds of the other Straw Hats' celebratory ruckus drifted up to him.

"Oi! Chopper!" he called. "Get over here!"

"Hmm?" Chopper stopped mid-cheer and ran across the ship to the stern where Zoro's voice had come from. "Zoro? What's wro-?"

He paused in surprise, surveying the scene before him.

Zoro had carefully laid Tashigi out onto the deck, setting her sword aside with his three.

"Can you hurry?" he asked in all seriousness. "I don't think she's breathing."

Chopper nodded slowly and began to make his way to her side. However, he was quickly joined by the rest of the curious Straw Hats.

"Oi, marimo! What the hell did you do to her?"

"Hey, that's….Tashigi!"

"Is she okay…..?"

Ignoring the questions, Chopper knelt down beside her, feeling her wrist for a pulse.

"This is that marine lady, isn't it." He said quietly as he counted out the seconds.

"Yeah." Zoro nodded, trying to appear indifferent.

"That's what I thought…..h-hey, where's her sword?"

"Relax, it's over there. Besides, she's unconscious. I think you're safe." The swordsman replied with a chuckle.

But Chopper just sighed, gently setting her arm down. "Zoro, I think you're too late….I couldn't feel a pulse."

"Whaaaattttt?" Sanji cried, suddenly appearing by Tashigi's side, looking her over frantically. "M-Maybe she just needs mouth-to-mouth! Allow me to-!"

"No, stupid ero-cook! Lay off!" Zoro growled, shoving him away. "Let me see….." He muttered, feeling for her heartbeat himself as he tried to quell the nervous butterflies rising in his stomach.

A few seconds later, he pulled his hand away.

It was there. It had to be. He wouldn't let his rescue efforts be in vain.

Clenching his fist tightly, he stared down intently at her closed eyes.

"_I said no dying!_" He whispered fiercely before bringing his fist down hard on her stomach, an impact that was sure to leave a mark.

"EHHH?" The crew gaped at him, jaws dropping in disbelief.

"I'LL KILL YOU FOR THAT, SHITTY MOSSHEAD!"

"Stop it, Sanji!" Chopper cried, holding up a hoof as he looked back down at Tashigi. "I-It worked!"

Sure enough, she had begun to cough up water, gasping for air, but breathing nonetheless.

"SUGEEEE!" Luffy gushed with stars in his eyes. "Zoro, since when can you bring people back from the dead?"

Sanji was in tears. "Such beautiful porcelain skin now tarnished for all eternity by the tainted claws of a shit-faced marimo!"

However, Zoro was oblivious to the background noise as he continued to gaze down at Tashigi, his brow furrowed with concern as she struggled for breath.

Not realizing what he was doing, he instinctively sat her up, rubbing her back as she coughed out the last of the water.

Tashigi shivered as her senses began to return to her. A pair of strong, comforting arms was holding her. Smoker? And voices….voices she didn't recognize….who…..were they?

"Hey, give her some space! She's waking up!"

"Oh crap, back up guys….this is gonna be a flail fest…."

"ZORO'S A MIRACLE WORKER!"

_Z-Zoro_? Tashigi's eyes shot open, then closed again at the blinding light of the sun. A few seconds later, she tried again, blinking into focus.

Zoro looked down at her with a smirk on his face. "So you _are _alive!"

"UWAAAAAAHHHHH! ZORO! GET AWAY FROM ME!"

She swung at him blindly with her fist, missing as she scrambled backwards. "W-What the-? Where the hell am I? Where's….where's Commodore Smoker? What have you monsters done to him? You touch him and I'll kill you!" She growled, reaching to her side for her Shigure. However, she panicked when she found she was grasping air. "AAAAHHH MY SHIGURE! WHERE IS IT?"

"O-Oi! You need to calm down! I-I need to check you for further injury!" Chopper said meekly from his hiding spot behind Nami's legs.

"W-What? What the heck is going-?"

"Hey." Zoro's voice interrupted her hysteria. He gripped her shoulders tightly, giving her a shake. "Calm down! You're fine! You're on our ship now, so can you just shut up for a second? Jeez, if you hadn't been in the water in the first place, you wouldn't be in this predicament, you baka!"

She narrowed her eyes at him. "Don't touch me!" she said, shoving his hands away. "And what are you talking about if I hadn't been in the….oh….." Now she remembered.

Zoro snorted. "Yeah, you're lucky I even felt like saving you. Although, I'm kind of regretting it now…"

"Urghhhhh…I-I don't need your help, _Zoro_! I have to get out of here! I demand you return my sword and take me back to my ship or I'll have you all arrested!"

Luffy giggled. "Shishishi~~! We ditched the Smokey guy ages ago!"

Tashigi shifted her glare to their captain. "What are you talking about?"

He shrugged. "We escaped! Just like we always do!"

She rolled her eyes. "Hmph! Well then give me my sword and I'll get out of here myself!"

"I don't think so." Zoro said, gathering the four swords and standing up. "I still don't trust you." And with that, he sauntered off to the crow's nest with a smirk.

"HEY WAIT! COME BACK HERE! YOU STUPID-!"

Now it was Nami's turn to cut in. "Hey look. We won't attack you unless you attack us, so he's actually doing you a favor. Without a sword, you can't attack us, can you. And we'll drop you off at the next port, okay? Then you can meet up with your marine buddies. No harm done." She turned to walk back inside. "I'll get you some dry clothes. But seriously, can't you at least _pretend_ to be a little grateful? He did just save your life, y'know."

Tashigi gave a defeated sigh. "Fine. I'll thank him later….." And she followed Nami inside.

As soon as the two women were out of sight, Luffy turned to the others. "Okay seriously! How the heck did Zoro do that? It was like magic!"

Robin smiled knowingly. "It looks like Kenshi-san has a soft spot for swordsmen."

"Huh?" Luffy shook his head. "Nooooo. Robin, he said earlier that he likes _girls_."

But Robin merely chuckled. "So it would seem….."

**TO BE CONTINUED…..**

~~(^^^)~~

_**A/N**__**: **__There's chapter two! Yowzaaaa this was actually way longer than I intended it to be but oh well! Hope you enjoyed it! Thanks for reading!_


	3. Frustration

_**A/N**__**: **__YOSH!!!! Chapter three!! Quick update this time! And just throwin' this out there, but WHO HERE IS EXCITED FOR STRONG WORLD???!!!! *waves hand around* MEEEEEE!!!! BWAAAHAHAAHA!! Anyway, One Piece does not belong to me! But if it did……well then that would just be awesome…yes it would…._

~~(^^^)~~

_The waves. The waves were relentless. Ruthlessly crashing and pummeling her, pushing her deeper and deeper into the cold unknown far below the surface. She couldn't escape. She was drowning. Reaching up towards the diminishing sunlight above her, Tashigi felt the last of her breath leave her lungs. The light…..it was so…….intriguing….. She couldn't….look away….._

_Suddenly, as if willed into power by her thoughts, a dark figure moved fluidly in front of the glow, seizing her roughly by the waist and pulling her upwards into the light. Further and further, the strong arms carried her. A desperate voice. "__**I said no dying!**__" And then…._

She woke with a start, gasping, as she sat up in bed. She was shaking slightly, so she pulled her knees to her chest and rested her forehead on them, trying to calm herself down. _Just a dream…..only a……_

Her eyes widened. No. It hadn't been a dream. This was not her bed. These weren't her clothes. She was on that pirate ship. The Straw Hats…….Zoro….

She scowled as her thoughts once again returned to the former pirate hunter, and she began twisting the bed-sheets in frustration. Yes, he had saved her, and yes, his crew had been more than hospitable, but it was all an act. Of that she was sure. A silly charade put on by the enemy to trap her, to draw her in. Surely a group of pirates would have all sorts of devious plots up their disgusting, treasure-grubbing sleeves. And they had taken her Shigure, those bastards. Frowning, she clenched her fists. No. An incredibly charming, yet impossibly infuriating bastard of a _swordsman_ had taken her Shigure. Even if he _had_ saved her life, he wasn't doing her much good by kidnapping her only hope of escape.

Her stomach growled, interrupting her thoughts, and she finally became aware of the time. The morning sun was shining through the slats in the shades, casting striped shadows on the walls of the navigator's room.

The navigator's room. She found it strange that they had trusted her enough to let her stay there, where she could easily tamper with maps, or snoop around in the log book. But then again, the Straw Hats seemed to put their trust in strange things. After all, Nico Robin, the former female leader of Baroque Works, had joined them. Still, she couldn't help but feel extremely wary of this bizarre group of people.

Her stomach growled again, louder this time, and she sighed. It looked like she would have to face them if she wanted to eat. Pulling back the covers, she climbed out of bed, but winced suddenly as an unnoticed pain in her stomach made itself known. With a frown, she carefully pulled up the borrowed t-shirt she was wearing, her eyebrows rising in surprise as she stared down at a large purplish bruise that was forming on her torso.

_What the hell….? _She thought, trying to remember when she had received such a blow. Slowly, she pulled her shirt back down and glanced around the room suspiciously. Even with her graceless ways, she didn't see how a bruise of that shape could have resulted from tripping over nothing like she was prone to do.

Still frowning, she walked cautiously to the door, making sure nothing potentially dangerous was in her way. Turning the doorknob, she opened the door and poked her head out into the hallway. It was empty. No one appeared to be around. She stepped out and walked to the stairway. Voices were drifting down from the upper level, and, with a sigh, she trudged up the stairs.

The crew turned as the kitchen door squeaked open, revealing a nervous-looking Tashigi standing awkwardly in the doorframe.

"Ummm…good….morning…." she said, clearly annoyed that she had to say anything to them at _all_.

"TASHIGI-CHWAAAAANNNN!!!! OHAIYOOOOO!!! WELCOME TO MY WONDERFUL KITCHEN OF LOVEEE!!! WHAT CAN I GET YOU, MY PRINCESS??!" Sanji cried, floating around her frantically as he mellorine'd.

She chuckled a little, raising an eyebrow. "Ehehehe…..well, anything's fine really, I---."

"NO!" The cook interrupted as he latched onto her arms, pushing her up against the wall. "Not just _anything_, my love. Only the best will do. Allow me to prepare you my specialty. A passion fruit smoothie with a twist of blueberry flavoring to go with the gorgeous cobalt hue of your luscious----AAAAAHHH!!!"

His extravagant rambling was cut short as Nami grabbed him painfully by the ear and dragged him away. "Shut up, you dork!!! Leave her alone! Now go make some more waffles!"

"Hai, Nami-swan……." And he shuffled submissively back to the stove.

The redhead rolled her eyes. "Sorry about him. He's an idiot, but he's harmless. Here, come sit down." Nami pulled another chair up to the table and gestured for Tashigi to join her, Robin, and Chopper, who were seated there as well.

"Thanks," Tashigi couldn't help but smile, however, she shot a wary glance at Robin as she sat.

Robin gave a small chuckle at the marine's apprehension. "I hope you're not still holding a grudge against me, Officer. Or I suppose your title is 'Ensign' now, thanks to the arrest of my former partner." She said, resting her chin on her hand as she gazed across the table at the nervous woman.

"Well…you did try to kill me…." Tashigi replied, meeting Robin's eyes for the first time.

Robin merely smiled. "I've tried to kill a lot of people. I wouldn't take it too personally."

Tashigi furrowed her brows, unsure of what to make out of that statement. A small voice piped up, saving her from responding.

"Ummm…a-are you feeling any better?" Chopper asked quietly, peering at her from beneath his hat.

She turned, eyeing the reindeer with a small smile and a nod. "I am. Thank you," she paused, contemplating whether she should mention the mysterious bruise she'd found, then decided against it. "I guess I just needed some sleep."

"Good!" They all looked up as Sanji set a plate of freshly-made waffles on the table. "Stupid baka marimo being rough with a lady…" He grumbled, pulling up a chair as well.

Tashigi smirked, reaching for a waffle, when suddenly, the door to outside burst open as Luffy, Usopp, Franky, and Brook raced in.

"LOOK GUYS!!! I KNEW I SMELLED FOOD!!! WHERE'S THE SAUSAGE?!! MEAT MEAT MEEEEAT!!!"

"Yohohoho! I can see it looks amazing! Even though I don't have eyes! SKULL JOKE! YOHOHOHOHOOOO!!!"

"You're right! It looks SUPERRRR!!!"

"Grab the syrup, guys! Go!"

And with that, the four disappeared just as soon as they had come, running back outside, leaving a trail of dust behind them.

Nami scowled. "Jeez, those guys….what the hell…comin' in here and----AAAAHHH!!! HEY THEY TOOK THE WAFFLES!!!! LUFFY!!!" Baring her teeth, she shoved back from the table and raced after them, leaving the remaining four at the table.

Sanji sighed dreamily. "Nami-san is such a vision when she's angry!"

Tashigi sat back, trying to contemplate what had just happened. She had been right to be wary, but not for the reason she had originally thought. The Straw Hats were extremely powerful fighters, but outside of battle? The most they could do was steal her waffles. Still, there was one who worried her…

"Where's Zoro?" she asked, trying to appear uncaring.

Chopper shrugged. "Hmm…I haven't seen him since yesterday actually…"

Robin smiled. "Well, isn't it obvious? He's avoiding you, Shōi-san*." She smirked knowingly. "It's actually rather amusing. I've never seen him this worked up before."

"Yeah, well, he's probably just pissed he's not the only swordsman on the ship anymore. Weirdo…" Sanji mumbled as he got up again to replenish the waffle supply.

Tashigi frowned. "Well…I kinda wanted to thank him…y'know…for yesterday…."

"Your decision. But I suggest you eat something first." Sanji called over his shoulder. "A conversation with him? You're gonna need your strength."

~~(^^^)~~

"Commodore, you should eat something." The marine offered as he entered Smoker's office. "It'll take at least three days to reach the port where the Straw Hats are headed. There's not much we can do in the meantime."

Smoker just sat there, his back facing the subordinate as he stared out the lone window. He growled, signaling his annoyance, causing the marine to sigh.

"Well….if you need anything, sir…..", and with a half-hearted salute, he left, shutting the door behind him.

The commodore let out a heavy breath, rubbing his temple. He was exhausted and hadn't slept a wink since the events of the previous day. His rage had subsided, and now he felt the blow of pure grief hit him as he realized how truly alone he was.

Working for the Navy was an extremely impersonal job. Little was known about any of its leaders, and bonds were almost never formed between employees. _Almost_ never. He laughed humorlessly. He and Tashigi had a bond all right. One forged by the blood, sweat, and tears of marine life, but a bond no less.

He had to admit, he had underestimated her when she had first come to him. Her swordsmanship had been sloppy, and she was inexperienced, almost _too_ inexperienced to understand the hardships that world government officials had to withstand on a daily basis. Yet, he had seen something in her, a fire of determination, burning brightly with the will to bring justice to the world. She was a bird who could not fly, but that did not mean she never would.

Then, just as she had begun to take off….. Smoker groaned again. He wouldn't think of it. He couldn't or he would never regain his composure. Taking out the Straw Hats was the only way, the only option he could think of that might provide him, and her for that matter, with some peace. She had wanted Roronoa for herself, but now _he_ would have to fulfill her wishes. He scoffed. How ironic it was that he had not even wanted to acknowledge her wishes in the first place. And now look where it had gotten them. She was gone, and he was broken. All because he had been a stubborn, overprotective ass.

The ship was perfectly on-course to the next island, following the Mugiwara crew in hot pursuit.

And yet, never had he felt so lost.

~~(^^^)~~

Perfect. For once, he knew exactly where he was going. As he looked at the schedule he had planned out, Zoro knew exactly when he would be able to sneak down to get food, shower, etc. for the next three days. All without having to deal with that irritating marine woman.

With a satisfied nod, he set the paper aside and began his daily workout, starting with two-ton weight bicep curls in sets of five-hundred. Fifty-one curls later, he found his thoughts drifting back to the damn girl. How she had looked when she was unconscious, so helpless and small. And then when she had woken up, a fiery, yet captivating passion in her eyes as she glared daggers at him.

He scowled, looking across the room in an attempt to distract himself. Her katana was resting in the weapons closet next to his three, its proud green hilt seeming to stare defiantly at him so much like its master.

Glaring back at it, he silently cursed himself for leaving it out in plain view.

"What are you looking at?" He said aloud, deciding to stare out at the sea instead. She'd want it back soon, he knew. Well too bad. She wouldn't be getting it. She didn't know the ship, so she wouldn't suspect a training area to be in the observation tower. She wouldn't come up here. Still, he couldn't help but feel a little nervous that she might-----.

He jumped, startled, almost dropping his weight as the hatch on the floor began jiggling as if someone were trying to get in.

"Sheesh….always bothering me..." he mumbled, annoyed, as he set down the weight and walked over to the source of the noise. It was probably Nami again, coming to bug him about cleaning up or God knows what.

With reluctance, he knelt down and wrenched open the still-moving hatch, sticking his head out grumpily with a loud, "What?!"

Tashigi yelped in surprise and lost her grip on the ladder. Quickly, she grappled with the air, trying to grab hold of the rung again, before she lost her balance and started to fall.

His hand shot out, grabbing her wrist and saving her from plummeting to the deck far below. He pulled her up swiftly, the momentum causing her to fall on top of him as they fell back to the floor.

He was shirtless, and this did not go unnoticed as Tashigi stared down at him in shock, his breath hot on her face.

Blushing ferociously, she rolled off him, panting slightly as she sat up.

His face mirroring hers in redness, he narrowed his eyes. "Jeez! Just what are you trying to do? Kill yourself? That's twice I've had to save your lousy ass!"

She crossed her arms, still trying to quell her uncontrollable blushing. "N-No! I'm not trying to kill myself! You're the reason why I keep getting in these situations anyway!"

"Hey, don't blame me!" He growled, standing up. "It's your own damn fault! I'm the one who _saved_ you!"

Tashigi rolled her eyes, adjusting her glasses as she stood up too. "Well, if it's my own damn fault then why do you keep rescuing me?! Why not just let me fall to my doom or drown in the ocean? Hmm?"

He looked away for a second, focusing on something in the distance, then turned back to her with a mischievous glint in his eyes. "I don't like watching people die," He took a step closer to her, smirking. "Unless it's by my own hand."

She glared at him, taking a step closer as well. "You don't scare me, Zoro."

"Yeah, well you scare the hell out of me…." he mumbled quietly to himself.

"What?"

"What?" he retaliated quickly, not wanting his cover blown.

"Urghhhhh….you just….you….GAH!" She cried in frustration, pointing an accusatory finger at him. "You make me so _mad_, Zoro! I came up here to thank you but now I'm not so sure I want to anymore!"

"Well, fine! Do what you want! Don't let me stop you! But in case you ever decide to feel grateful, I'll say this in advance. You're welcome! Now leave me alone!"

She stared at him. Why did this guy have to be so confusing? She had never met anyone who had ever truly left her speechless. That is, until she'd come across Roronoa Zoro. She should do as he said, leave him to his business. But then again, hadn't he just told her to do what she wanted?

"No. I don't think I want to! I think I'll hang around for a little while. So I'll take your advice, Zoro, and not let you stop me." She said with a smirk, a smug expression creeping over her face.

He frowned. She just had to be cute, didn't she. Standing there looking at him with that pleased look, her bangs falling sassily over her eyes as she stood with her hands on her hips. She thought she was so clever. She thought that he would give in. Well, he was Roronoa Zoro, and he most certainly did _not _give in to anyone, pirate or marine alike. Usually. With a groan, he felt his will ebbing as if she possessed her own type of haki that could bend him under her pressure.

One look at her, and he knew he was a goner. "I…..jeez…..whatever….just don't bother me! I'm training!" And with that, he shuffled back to his weights, muttering to himself all the way.

~~(^^^)~~

_**A/N**__**: **__Hehehe sorry if that seemed like kind of an abrupt ending, but it's late on a school night and I wanted to get at least SOMETHING up. Next chapter will be longer, I promise! Thanks for reading! _

_Oh yeah and the asterisk by Shōi-san! That means 'Ensign-san'. *shrugs* Didn't think many people would know that one. So yep dat's it! Until next time! xD_


	4. Foundations

_**A/N**__**: **__Ho man…sorry this took me a while…got busy again…*sigh*….. Wellllll anyway, don't own One Piece, never did, never will, yes yes yes, you know the drill and nowwwww…ON TO THE STORY!!! (Whoa and I just realized that rhymed….O_o hehehe ^^;)_

~~(^^^)~~

Zoro trudged back over to his weights, still muttering to himself. Just who did that woman think she was? Marching up there and refusing to leave, then messing with his mind so he had to give in. He shook his head. A perfectly good day of training and solitude was now ruined. All because he had saved her life.

He reached his weights and paused, glancing quickly over his shoulder before adding another five-hundred pounds to each side. If he had an audience, he might as well make the show good. With a slight grunt, he lifted up the heavy barbell and began lifting again. About ten curls in, she started talking.

"So what do you do up here?" she asked, taking a seat on the bench across from him.

He snorted. "Train? What's it look like I do, have tea parties?"

Tashigi frowned at his annoyed tone. "I don't appreciate the sarcasm, _Zoro_. If we're forced to be together for the next few days, I think the least we can do is try to _pretend_ we can stand each other."

"Are you kidding me?!" he cried, voice cracking in disbelief. "No one ever said you had to stay up here!"

Damn. For once, he was right. She looked away, biting her lip as she tried to think of a reply. Why _had _she wanted to stay? He infuriated her to no end, acted as if he knew so much more than her. He made no sense, this stubborn, strong-willed man. One who was sure to follow his own dreams, and who obviously didn't like taking orders from others. And yet, the Straw Hat kid had convinced him to follow him, to be his first mate. What that said about Zoro, she didn't know, but it sure spoke volumes about the captain.

Her brow still furrowed in thought, Tashigi turned back to look at Zoro, but he was no longer paying her any attention, his head turned away as he stared fixedly out the window. In such a short time, he appeared to have forgotten her presence completely, and she watched as his lips moved slightly, silently counting his reps. Still staring, she swallowed hard as a lone bead of sweat slid slowly down his neck, making its way over his collarbone before cascading down his smooth chest.

Tashigi's eyes widened, and she quickly looked away, feeling the intrusiveness of her gaze. However, she found her eyes wandering back as she noticed the long diagonal scar that ran crookedly over his upper body. She inhaled sharply and brought her hand to her mouth. How could anyone survive such a massive wound? And furthermore, what could have happened in the first place?

"Mihawk," he stated as if he had read her mind.

Alarmed, she brought her eyes up to his face, but his head was still turned, a distant look in his eyes. With a heavy sigh, he set down his weight and finally looked at her. His face said it all. The reason for his training. The reason for his swordsmanship. His purpose in life, she realized, was to defeat that man.

Nodding, he let out another breath before continuing. "I fought him, before I'd even reached the Grand Line, but I was nowhere near ready. He defeated me, destroyed two of my swords, slashed me open……but he let me live. Know why?" Zoro asked, staring intently at her as he stepped closer.

She blinked and shook her head silently, feeling his intensity bear down on her.

He narrowed his eyes. "He didn't kill me because he thought I showed promise, thought I had potential! Not because I was weak, not because I was young! Not because he felt bad for me and sure as _hell_ not because I was a woman!" He spit out the words as he continued to approach her, closing the gap between them.

Her eyes widened as the magnitude of what he was saying sank in. Zoro. He was speaking of his battle with Mihawk, but did he really mean…?

"So you thought I had potential? Back in Logue Town….and yesterday.…you let me live….because of that?" Slowly, she stood up, looking firmly into his dark eyes.

He shrugged, a wicked grin spreading across his face as his gaze remained locked with hers. "I dunno what you're talking about!" Zoro said, before abruptly turning away from her.

So she _was_ smarter than she looked. At least now she had her answers, so she could leave him the hell alone. Still smirking, he strode over to the weapons closet, meaning to lock away her Shigure. After hearing that speech about promise, the damn woman would probably want to fight him again to ensure her worth. And he most certainly was not in the mood for that. He was just about to close the closet door when a loud shriek broke the silence.

"My Shigure!!!!" Tashigi yelped, and she was at him in a flash, racing for her sword with a look of wild determination.

"Hey!!! What're you----??? GAHHH!" he cried as she shoved at him, trying to reach her katana. "I told you! You don't get it….back yet!!!" He growled, voice strained as he struggled against her. Quickly, he turned and snatched her sword out of the closet, holding it above his head. "Not until I trust you! And I doubt that'll ever happen, so not until….not until….!!!"

"Not until what?!" she asked, crossing her arms as she glared at him. Suddenly, however, her eyes lit up and before he could react, she promptly drew his Wadō from the closet and held the blade to his throat triumphantly. She smiled, reveling in his shocked expression, his mouth gaping and his eyes wide. "Now give me back my sword or else!"

But he wasn't listening. In fact, he couldn't hear anything, save for the haunting voice of a certain girl. The former master of the Wadō Ichimonji. Kuina.

She looked just like her, holding Zoro at bladepoint, and he could do nothing but stare. All two-thousand and one of his losses came flooding back as he gawked at Tashigi. Holding Wadō, a fierceness in her eyes that was all too familiar, the frightening similarity of her movements caused him to shiver slightly. Why? Why did she have so much control over him? Kuina never had. But this older version….this woman had him frozen to the spot.

Defeat by Kuina had always frustrated, infuriated him even. And yet, losing to her now, he felt-----. He shook his head slowly. No. This wasn't Kuina. This was an entirely different person. This woman recognized that willpower, not strength alone, made a swordsman. This woman was strong enough to put _him_ in his place, maybe not with a sword, but with sheer determination. He gulped as he realized that this woman, Tashigi, had him completely and utterly captivated.

She frowned, slowly lowering the sword as she noticed he was still staring. He had lowered her Shigure as well, holding it limply by his side where she could easily take it. Raising her gaze to meet his, Tashigi felt her face heating up substantially. He appeared to be deep in thought again, the same intensity as before swirling within his eyes, making it difficult to pinpoint a certain emotion. However, there was one that was unmistakable. Beneath his baffled expression, she caught it, causing her to blush even more. Fear. She certainly had an effect on the former pirate hunter, and the great Roronoa Zoro appeared to be…..afraid…..of what she was doing to him.

Slowly, Tashigi smiled, taking a step closer and giggling as another wave of uncertainty washed over his features. His eyes darted back and forth between her face and the sword she carried, and he tried to glare at her, failing miserably as he was unable to look at her directly. "W-What?" he stammered, mouth open again as he fumbled for words.

With a smirk, she shoved Wadō into his gaping mouth, causing him to stumble backwards in shock.

She sighed and shook her head. "You really are handsome, Zoro, and I'm not quite sure what to think about it."

"Hrnnn?????!!!!" he exclaimed, his voice muffled by the sword as he stared at her in disbelief.

Still grinning, she walked over to the hatch, climbing down onto the ladder. Shooting a last glance in his direction, she narrowed her eyes. "And you'd better take good care of my sword!"

With that, the hatch slammed shut and she was gone, leaving the bewildered swordsman alone again.

~~(^^^)~~

Smoker sighed as he stood on the deck, his gaze fixed blankly on the open ocean before him. The wind ruffled his silver hair, and the movement of the water below churned up a salty spray, splashing him lightly in the face.

He wrinkled his nose a bit, but didn't complain as he leaned forward to rest his elbows on the railing, his cigars trailing smoke behind him as he took a long drag.

"Tashigi," he murmured aloud, continuing to focus on the rising sun. Soon she would be avenged….

"Commodore!" A sudden voice tore him from his thoughts, and he turned with a grunt to see a subordinate approaching him with a Den Den Mushi.

"Sir, you have a call from HQ." The marine said with a salute as he offered the Den Den to him.

Smoker nodded and took the transponder snail. One look at the ear-splitting grin on the snail's face caused him to roll his eyes. Taking the receiver off its hook, he answered.

"Vice Admiral Garp. A pleasure to hear from you." Smoker said, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Bwahahahaaa!" Garp laughed loudly, and a scowl appeared on Smoker's face. "So I hear you're going after my grandson and his crew now! That should be interesting!"

Smoker snorted. "Hai, sir. I'll have nine dead bodies to deliver when we're done. And that bastard swordsman of theirs will be the first to go…."

Garp grinned even wider, the snail mimicking his toothy expression. "I wouldn't be so confident, Smoker! My grandson's an idiot, but he sure has a knack for getting away from you! That son of a bitch! Wahaha!" he said, chuckling wildly.

"With all due respect, _sir_, I don't care what you say, I _will_ defeat them this time! I have to….." Smoker growled, glaring at the Den Den Mushi.

"Ahhh…." Garp's smile disappeared and his gravelly voice softened a bit. "This is about your partner, isn't it. I'm sorry to hear of her death, but you of all people should know that marines die every day. It's part of the job. Although, I was a bit surprised that such a high-ranking official could have fallen to pirates. Crazy times, eh?" He laughed again, his smile returning.

Shaking his head slowly, Smoker struggled to retain control of himself as he trembled slightly. The nerve of him. How the _hell_ could he say that. Torrents of rage shook through him, and it took every ounce of his willpower not to strangle the Den Den Mushi in an attempt to get to Garp. How _dare_ he brush off his loss with such indifference. How _dare_ he laugh. Garp was as uncaring as…well….his filthy pirate grandson and his crew.

"Anything more to say or can I hang up on you? I have people to murder…." Smoker snapped, his voice low with anger.

"WAHAHA!!!!" Garp threw his head back, laughing his hardest yet. "Murder? For God's sake, Smoker, don't _murder_ them! We'll lose thirty percent of their bounties the second they stop breathing! No, no, just bring them to the base on the next island, and we'll transfer them to the Impel from there." He smirked. "Then we can arrange for a proper execution. Besides, I want to see Luffy one last time before he gets his head chopped off! Bwaaaahahaha!"

"But, sir, I----!" Smoker exclaimed in protest.

"No buts! That will be all." And with that, the Den Den clicked off, leaving Smoker in silence.

"URGHHH!" he cried, shoving the snail into a subordinate's arms and storming off down the deck. "Damn that Garp!" Growling, he punched open the door to the living quarters and stomped to his office, slamming the door shut behind him.

Finally giving in, he slumped down in his chair, his features still marred with anger and frustration. He scoffed. Irony just loved to follow him, it seemed. Hadn't his orders to Tashigi been eerily similar to the ones he had just received? And he had reacted just as she had.

He gave a heavy sigh before leaning back and closing his eyes. Perhaps this meant it would be _his_ last mission as well. If that was true, then so be it. He owed it to Tashigi to make it _his_ last act of defiance too.

Zoro _would_ die. He would make sure of it.

~~(^^^)~~

"But Sanjiiiii! We're gonna be at the island tomorrow! We can stock up then!" Luffy whined as Sanji shoved a fishing rod in his face.

"Not a chance, you shitty gomu-gomu! If you wanna eat in between then, I suggest you get catching! Baka, you're the one who ate all the food in the first place….." Sanji muttered as he steered Luffy to the edge of the ship.

"Oi, Luffy!" Usopp cried as he ran up to the still-pouting captain. "We can take the Mini Merry and go on a fishing adventure!"

Just like that, Luffy's frown dissipated, and he trembled with excitement.

"YOSHHHH!!! Let's do it! Tooooo the Mini Merry!"

"Alright, alright, I'll get it ready for you…." Franky rolled his eyes, but chuckled as he walked below-deck.

"I wanna come, I wanna come!" Chopper yelled, jumping up and down, clapping his hooves.

"Me as well, Luffy-san!" Brook called as he bounded over to the group.

"YEAHHHH!!!! ADVENTUREEEE!!! Come on, men!" Luffy couldn't contain his elation as he skipped to the edge of the ship to check on Franky's progress below.

"Not so fast, Luffy." Nami said, walking over to him and grabbing his shirt collar. "Take someone who can swim along. Who knows what kind of trouble you idiots will get yourselves into…."

Usopp frowned. "Oi, oi, Nami! I can swim! In fact, I am the great Usopp-sama!!!! The Ocean Swimming Champion!!!" He cried, striking a heroic pose as Luffy and Chopper fawned over him.

Nami just smacked her forehead. "I repeat. Take someone who can swim."

Tashigi, who had been watching the scene from the upper deck, chuckled as she walked down the stairs. These were pirates, but, after spending two nights with them, she couldn't help but realize she was having fun. Not once had eight of the nine crew members questioned her motives, and she was even beginning to feel, dare she say it……like one of th---.

Quickly, she dismissed the thought from her mind. She was a marine; she could never stoop so low as to become a pirate. But she had come to understand that these pirates were not evil. They were simply a group of adventurers, out to fulfill their dreams, somehow managing to wreak havoc on the world government along the way. And so, while she could, she figured she might as well have a taste of adventure too.

"I'll go!" she said, smiling at the crew's surprised reactions.

"YAAAAYYY!!!" Luffy exclaimed. "See, Nami? Tashigi will supervise, so now we can leave, right?"

Nami frowned. "Are you sure you want to? I mean, a fishing trip with those guys isn't exactly what I'd call a 'leisurely excursion'," she said, using air quotes.

Tashigi chuckled and gave a nod. "It'll be fine! I'm sure! Besides, I'm a good swimmer!"

A snort from behind her had her turning around. "Puh, yeah, says the dumbass who almost drowned two days ago! I'll go too." Zoro said, sauntering over to join the crew.

"ZORO'S COMING!!!! WOO-HOOOOO!!!" Luffy and Chopper were ecstatic as they began dancing around jovially.

"Okay….have fun, I guess. Good luck." Nami shrugged and turned to go inside, followed closely by Sanji.

"Take good care of her, marimo…." He muttered, closing the door behind him.

Meanwhile, the others had run below-deck to prepare, leaving the two swordsmen alone.

"Why are you_ really_ coming?" Tashigi asked, narrowing her eyes at Zoro as she peered at him over her glasses.

He merely shrugged indifferently. "Still don't trust you yet, remember?"

She sighed. She hadn't seen him since their little "chat" in the observation tower. He had obviously composed himself and was back to his old rude ways. Maybe she'd only imagined the emotions she'd thought she'd detected from him the previous day. After all, she'd only seen them for a second. But then, why would he bother following her if he didn't care?

"Do you really think I'd try to pull something out there?" she asked, putting her hands on her hips.

Again, he shrugged. "Won't know unless I'm there, will I?"

His eyes lingered on her a moment longer before he turned to catch up with the others.

Tashigi sighed again and rolled her eyes.

_Maybe I'll never understand him…._ she thought as she followed behind.

~~(^^^)~~

Robin smirked as she watched the Mini Merry* sail away from her bedroom window.

"Have fun, you two…" she murmured before turning back to her book.

~~(^^^)~~

_**A/N**__**: **__YOSH!!! Another chapter finished! I had a lot of fun writing this one hehehe….=P Again, sorry it took so long for me to finish! Hope it was worth the wait! _

_Ahh yes and I starred the Mini Merry cuz I realized that it can only carry four people….but six of them were going…not that it matters really, but just in case anyone questioned it…..*looks around*…maybe I'm just paranoid… _

_Waaahaha oh whatever! Thanks for reading! Laterrrr!_


	5. Trust

_**A/N**__**: **__Wowww I just wanna thank everyone who's reviewed/read this story! Never thought it'd get so popular this fast! Jeez I had noooo idea there were that many ZoroxTashigi fans out there! :D SO THANK YOUUU! Alllright and do I really need to say that I don't own One Piece? *sigh* Guess so…. And now….CHAPTER FIVE! COMMENCE! *salute*_

_Large italics section = flashback_

~~(^^^)~~

Tashigi sighed happily and leaned back against the side of the boat, closing her eyes as she felt the warm summer breeze and the gentle lap of the waves. Nami had said things were bound to get crazy, but Tashigi had trouble believing that as the Mini Merry sailed lazily along.

Zoro frowned as he watched her from across the boat. How could she be so damn relaxed? She was surrounded by pirates and yet, she didn't look the slightest bit nervous. Where was the frantic, clumsy, aggressive woman he'd encountered so many times before? She couldn't be…trusting them, could she? But then again, Luffy and the others seemed to be paying her no attention as they fumbled with the fishing gear, trying to catch a bite.

Still, Roronoa Zoro was most certainly not convinced, and he continued to stare at her intently, watching for the slightest hint of a death glare or the twitch of an evil eyebrow.

After a while, however, he, like his nakama, found he couldn't catch anything. In fact, he began to feel extremely uncomfortable as he realized he had never looked at a girl for this long before. Never in his nineteen years…had he wanted to. Why _had_ he been staring at her in the first place? He furrowed his brows, unable to remember…and unable to look away.

He watched as the wind tousled her soft, black-blue hair, ruffling the layers until they fell prettily around her face. The mid-day sunlight glinted off her fuchsia glasses. He smirked, remembering how pissed she'd been when he'd broken them in Logue Town. How flushed her face had become as she poked him in the chest angrily, getting quite close to his face as she yelled at him.

And like then, he felt his eyes wandering uncontrollably down to her lips, which were now curved in a laid-back smile, and found that all he wanted to do in that moment was-.

Zoro squeezed his eyes tightly shut as he groaned inwardly.

_What the hell, what the hell, what the __**hell**__!_ he thought, frustration overcoming him. He couldn't be thinking these things, he wasn't allowed to! She was the enemy, and he would be betraying his crew.

This was merely a test of his strength, and he would treat it as such.

Taking a deep breath, he clenched his fists, then frowned and wiped his suddenly-sweaty palms on his thighs.

Heaving out another sigh, he shook his head in defeat as he realized his gaze was still fixed on her.

"Oi, Tashigi," Luffy's voice chirped unexpectedly. Zoro was grateful for the interruption, which gave him something else to focus on.

"Huh? What is it?" she cried, sitting up with a start, blinking rapidly as if just woken from a daze.

The young captain giggled and crossed his legs, clasping his ankles as he rocked back and forth slightly on the seat beside her. "Over here!" He grinned toothily. "You awake?"

"Oh, heh, yeah," she chuckled, running a hand through her hair. "Sorry! Must've dozed off."

Luffy laughed. "It's okay! If you're that tired, we can take you back to the ship! You and Zoro can sleep together that way!"

A strangled cry came from the swordsman's direction as he stared wide-eyed at Luffy, breath hitching uncontrollably and face as red as his captain's shirt, doing everything in his power not to look at Tashigi.

"Nani, Zoro? You okay?" Luffy asked innocently, clearly not understanding the innuendo he'd just made.

Receiving no response from his struggling friend, Luffy frowned and turned back to Tashigi, whose face was just as red.

"Uh, n-no, I'm…..f-fine, thanks…." she stammered, quickly looking down as she tried to compose herself.

Luffy just chuckled again, oblivious to the awkwardness of the situation. "Tashigi, are you _sure_ you're a marine?"

"Hmm?" Tashigi looked up again. "W-What do you mean?" she asked, not fully understanding the question.

He shrugged. "I dunno, you just seem different, that's all. You're nice, and funny, and you're not tryin' to kill us all the time. Even Zoro likes you already! You got him to come fishing with us, and he almost _never_ comes fishing!"

Another choked exclamation arose from the seething marimo as he mentally added 'Kill Luffy' to his to-do list.

Still waiting for a reply from Tashigi, Luffy tilted his head and continued. "Ever thought about becoming a pirate?"

Feeling uncomfortable all over again, she shook her head vehemently, struggling to think of a response. The fact that she had to hesitate in the first place had her concerned.

"I…..no! I-I couldn't! I have to go back tomorrow! C-Commodore Smoker needs me and I…..I…I have to bring justice to the world!" she blurted out, her agitated state causing her face to flush again. She found herself glancing nervously over at Zoro, but his gaze was focused intently on his lap.

"Hey, it's okay," Luffy said with a frown. "You can be a marine if you want. I was just sayin'…"

And with that, he eagerly diverted his attention back to Usopp and Brook, who were busy trying to get Chopper to act as bait.

"Aw come onnnn, Chopper! We'll just hook the line up to your belt loop here and-!"

Suddenly, Usopp's chattering was cut short as the fishing line began to unravel rapidly. The boat lurched, and everyone fell forward. Whatever was on the end of the line was _huge_.

Usopp and Brook both grabbed onto the fishing pole, pulling back desperately until the boat stopped, sending them all stumbling backwards and Tashigi hurtling right into Zoro's lap.*

They stared at each other in shock, mortified beyond belief, but neither could make an effort to move before the Mini Merry shot forward again, the powerful fish dragging them along behind it.

Chopper and Usopp's screaming was suddenly drowned out by a low guttural roar emanating from the sea, sending ripples across the water's surface.

"What the hell was that?" Luffy exclaimed, laughing as he rushed excitedly to the edge of the boat, leaning over the edge to peer into the water.

He barely had time to jump back before an enormous wall of water erupted from the ocean, hitting the side of the boat, nearly flipping it over as what looked like a gigantic, sharp-toothed piranha leaped over them with a look of menacing hunger.

Zoro instinctively held on to Tashigi, keeping her from falling overboard as they rocked precariously, water spilling over the side.

He looked up to check on the others, but was blinded by a brilliant light radiating from Luffy, whose excitement over the situation could not be contained as he sobbed and sparkled.

"Oi! You're shining too brightly! How the hell are we supposed to see where the fish wen-!"

"AAAAHHH! BROOK FELL IN!" Chopper and Usopp began flailing around, whimpering and carrying on.

Zoro rolled his eyes. "Urghhh…'course he did…..Alright, alright, I'll-!"

But a sudden splash interrupted him, and he looked up to see that Tashigi was gone.

"What?" he cried, scampering to the edge of the boat. "Gahhhhh! You stupid woman! That freaking killer fish is down there!"

He dug his fingers frantically through his hair as he tried to see below the waves. "Stupid, stupid, _stupid_!" Pounding his fist on the railing, he was about to jump in after her when another rumbling sound shook the water, and the fish leaped up again, the sun glinting off its silver scales.

"That's it, fish! We're gonna feast on you tonight!" Luffy yelled with a smirk as he jumped up high into the air. "GOMU GOMU NOOOO…PISTOLLLL!" And his fist connected with the fish, sending it crashing down into the water below. A second later, it floated to the surface, stunned from the blow.

"YOSHA! Good job, Luffy! Just like I told you to dooooo!" Usopp cried, and he threw a net over the marine monster, securing it to the side of the boat just before Luffy came hurtling back down, landing on top of the sniper.

Meanwhile, Zoro hadn't taken his eyes off the water, his anxiety growing by the second. Suddenly, however, bubbles began forming on the surface, followed quickly by two dark heads of hair. Zoro let out an audible sigh of relief as he and the others helped the still-panting pair back onboard.

"Jeez," Zoro mumbled aloud. "Crazy person….You must really have a death wish…Not that I care though!" he added quickly, but was unable to hide the smirk creeping across his face.

Tashigi smirked as well before turning to Brook. "Are you okay?"

Brook nodded, sitting up slowly. "….I…I thought I was a goner! Ah! Even though I'm already dead! Yohohoho! My lady!" he cried, turning suddenly and taking Tashigi by the hand. "You have saved me and I thank you! Now, as a token of my gratitude, please allow me to see your panties!"

"HOW IS THAT SHOWING GRATITUDE?" Usopp and Chopper exclaimed in unison, slapping the air.

Eyes widening, Zoro turned quickly to see Tashigi's reaction, but instead of pulling away, she was….laughing.

And he had never seen anything so beautiful.

~~(^^^)~~

The scattered lights glowed brightly across the island, and the evening breeze beckoned the ship closer. Smoker supposed it was a beautiful sight, but now he just felt indifferent. Leave it to his navigator to get them there a day ahead of schedule.

It was perfect. The perfect opportunity to stage a surprise attack on the Straw Hats. And yet, he couldn't help but feel a sense of dread about it.

He'd been ordered not to kill any of them and leave the rest to the "experts" at Impel Down. But he had no idea how he would react when he saw Roronoa's face, the face that had driven his partner over the edge.

For the past day, he had been convinced that he would go against Garp's orders, kill the swordsman right there and exact his revenge. But after the adrenaline rush of rebellion had subsided, he'd merely felt tired and empty….and overcome with a strange sensation that Tashigi wouldn't want any harm to come to the Straw Hat crew.

He shook his head, quickly dismissing the thought as he remembered the determined look she'd had in her eyes as she requested permission to take out Zoro.

And so, with the same determination, he gazed fixedly at the nearing island, unsure of what was to come, but sure that somehow, she would guide him through it.

~~(^^^)~~

"TO TASHIGI! KANPAIIIII!"

The voices of Zoro's nakama drifted up to him from the kitchen as he paced the deck, nervously clasping the four swords that were secured to his haramaki. He was too restless to sit down and enjoy the feast with them, the day's events replaying in his head as he ran a hand through his hair.

He refused to believe he was falling for her.

Roronoa Zoro did not fall in love with anyone. Period. He couldn't. It would be too distracting, and he more than anyone knew what a distraction that crazy Marine woman could be. She was argumentative, obnoxious; she got in the way, not to mention she arrested pirates for a living. The complete opposite of him, and he did not have time for opposition.

All they had done from the moment they met was butt heads in one way or another. They barely knew each other; they were from completely different worlds. She was her own person, clearly independent and, therefore, unpredictable. She couldn't be left alone for a second. Who knew what trouble she'd get herself into? But then again, if he was there to prot-.

Frustrated, he groaned, resting his elbows on the railing, his hands reaching up to rub his temples. "Is this some screwed-up twist of fate?" he mused aloud to the night air. "She's the _enemy_, dammit, the enemy!" He shouldn't even be _thinking_ these thoughts, let alone trying to make sense of them. With a sigh, he ran his hand over the hilt of Wadō to calm himself, a habit he'd formed in childhood. _Why is this happening to me?_

…..

_"Zoro and Kuina are gonna get maaaaarried!"_

_ Zoro stopped his training abruptly and turned to glare across the courtyard at the other dojo boys, clutching his wooden practice sword tightly._

_ "Whattt? Nuh uh! No way! Why the heck would we do that?" he said, crossing his arms, clearly upset that his training session had been interrupted by such a thought._

_ The boys laughed amongst themselves as they raised mischievous eyebrows at the young swordsman. "Because! You always lose to her! You're afraid of her! But if you __**didn't**__ like her, then you wouldn't want to __**be**__ like her!" One of the children said. _

_ Another nodded. "Yeah! And if you didn't like her, then you'd just find someone else to beat, instead of going back to __**her**__ every time!"_

_ Zoro frowned, sticking out his chin in defiance. "That's not true! I don't like her like that! Now leave me alone!" With another angry glance in his classmates' direction, he turned back to the training post. Eleven years of self-responsibility had taught him that swordsmanship truly was his only friend. Forging relationships was for the weak, and the only one who could amply take care of him was himself. _

_ "So you don't think she's cute, Zoro? You don't wanna kiss herrrr?" _

_He flinched, turning back around slowly, glowering at his peers who continued to tease him mercilessly. He could kick any of their scrawny little asses in a second, he knew, but it wasn't worth it. None of them could be trusted; therefore, he couldn't trust any of them to leave him alone after one measly beating. Still, the young boy was fed up, clenching his fists as he felt an outburst coming on._

_ "Urrghhhh! Who says I'm even gonna get married anyway! The world's greatest swordsman doesn't need a wife like Kuina!"_

_ The others just snickered. "Oooohhh! We'll tell her you said that! Then she'll __**really**__ beat you up!"_

_ "Fine! Tell her for all I care! But Kuina doesn't even value her swordsmanship anyway! She thinks she's just gonna get weaker and weaker 'cause she's a girl, and not even try when she's older! I don't trust people who give up their dreams that easily!" Zoro cried, panting slightly as he seethed, remembering what she'd told him the previous night._

_ And with that, he turned on his heel and stormed off, tears stinging at his eyes. It was true, he didn't trust Kuina's integrity, but she had been extremely patient with him, fighting him two-thousand and one times, and he had to admit he was grateful. She was the closest thing to a friend that he had. And he had made her a promise._

_ Nodding to himself, determination gleaming in his eyes, he broke into a sprint, running as fast as he could to the nearby forest. He would train hard today, and later that evening, challenge Kuina to their two-thousand and second duel._

_ The boys just stared after him until he was out of sight, some scowling and others looking utterly confused. _

_Suddenly, the door to the training room opened, and one of the sensei's assistants rushed out, a look of shock on his face as he quickly approached the children._

_ "All of you! Where's Zoro? Did he-? Oh nevermind. You all need to come inside right now! I'm afraid there's been an accident. Kuina's-."_

…

Zoro chuckled humorlessly at the memory. He hadn't trusted Kuina, yet he had become her friend…and look where that had gotten them. Obviously, forging a relationship with a rival was out of the picture for him. But it was happening all over again.

She looked the same, talked the same, but did she act the same? Zoro smirked as he realized Tashigi, however similar to Kuina she was, had something the deceased girl had not. Self-confidence and a long-lasting devotion to what she did best.

He couldn't trust her though. She was dangerous with those traits, and it could destroy them both. She was the enemy after all.

He shouldn't trust her. He had his crew to think about. It was his job to protect them. But with a sigh, he remembered that _she_ had done a much better job of protecting them earlier that day.

And so…._would_ he trust her? She was pulling him under fast, and he'd barely had time to take a breath. He was terrified to admit her control over him. No one had ever overpowered him so much since Kuina, but he couldn't deny his feelings.

With a shake of his head, he pushed back from the railing, heart pounding as he turned to walk down the stairs to the lower deck.

"I must be out of my fucking mind…" he murmured.

~~(^^^)~~

Quietly, Tashigi snuck out the door and stepped out onto the deck, taking in the night air as she shut the door behind her, closing out the sounds of the party.

She smiled as she made her way to the edge of the ship, enjoying the peace and quiet of the moment, but soon frowned again. She would have to leave this all tomorrow. She'd had her fun swapping lives, but now it was back to reality. Back to the enemy lines.

"Commodore Smoker," she said aloud, then trailed off. _If only you could see these people for what they truly are…._ she thought.

They had welcomed her, despite everything, treated her like one of the crew. One of them had even saved her life….numerous times…but she still wanted to know more….

Suddenly, a heavy footstep sounded behind her, and she jumped, whipping her around to see a dark figure emerging from the shadows.

"Zoro! Jeez!... Y-You scared me…" she stuttered, unable to make eye contact.

But the swordsman didn't reply. Instead, he reached down to his haramaki and unfastened her Shigure, holding it out to her, his expression unreadable.

Staring down at it, she blinked. "What's…what's this?"

He raised an eyebrow. "What's it look like? Your sword. You want it or not?"

Slowly, Tashigi nodded and took her katana from his outstretched hand. "Thank you….but…why?"

Zoro shrugged. "I said you'd get it back when I trusted you. You saved my nakama without a second thought. Guess you're not a heartless bitch after all."

Looking down at her Shigure, she grinned, before directing the smile up at him. "Yeah, well, you're not exactly the cold-hearted bastard I thought you were either."

He felt his face heating up from the warmth of her smile, and Zoro was grateful for the obscuring darkness. "So….we still enemies? Or is this a truce?"

"Not sure. What do you think?" Tashigi chuckled, still grinning, and she took a step closer, swiftly closing the gap between them.

Zoro gulped as he looked down at her. This was exactly the control that had worried him. He found that she could render him immobile simply by speaking or looking at him from behind her glasses. Another difference. Kuina never had this effect on him. He didn't know how to react, but he had decided to trust Tashigi, and so, he would stand his ground.

"I…uhh…you….." Zoro groaned inwardly as he realized he had forgotten how to speak. Her eyes were boring into him, and her smirk causing his heart to beat wildly in his chest.

She laughed, and he knew that if he hadn't been forcing himself to remain standing, he would have melted on the spot. "Why are you so afraid of me, Zoro?"

He paused, knowing exactly the reason for his fear, but she wouldn't get the satisfaction of knowing it just yet. "I….I don't know…but I always face my fears."

With a burst of bravery, he leaned in closer, quickly closing the gap between them, his lips colliding with hers as he captured her in a rough kiss.

He heard her sharp intake of breath, but she soon reached her hand up to the back of his neck, pulling him closer as the two embraced, pouring all their insecurities and uncertainties into each other.

A second later, they pulled away slowly, Zoro's eyes widening in realization of what had just occurred.

Tashigi giggled as he cleared his throat awkwardly, rubbing the back of his head.

"I, uh, polished your sword for you..." he said, giving a serious nod.

"Thanks," she smiled, raising her eyebrows.

"Ummmm….."

And the brave Roronoa Zoro ran.

~~(^^^)~~

_**A/N**__**: **__WOOT! Another chapter finished! Gahhh I hope they weren't too OOC at the end! ^^; Ho man…first time writing and Zoro romance there…=P _

_*"….the boat stopped, sending them all stumbling backwards and Tashigi hurtling right into Zoro's lap." - Just wanna thank KK the Prophet for giving me the idea for this part lol! _

_THANKS FOR READING! And Happy Holidays! :D_


	6. Realizations

_**A/N**__**: **__*sigh* Wowww I took FOREVER with this chapter and I'm terribly sorry! Hehe got caught up with the holidays and school and everything….grrrr…CURSE YOU LIFEEEE!!!! ^^; Waahhaa jkjk…but no seriously…__

_One Piece is not mine, blah blah blah, OKAY CHAPTER SIX!!!_

~~(^^^)~~

"Jeez, man! You tryin' to drown yourself in booze or something?"

Smoker winced at the man's sneering choice of words and tightened his grip on what was now his sixth bottle of beer.

"I can do whatever the hell I want. Why does it matter to you, asshole," he growled, meaning to send the man up in smoke with his glare.

Raising his eyebrows, the rude commentator got up, and, with a snarl, moved several seats away from Smoker.

The commodore sighed and swiveled in his seat to face forward again. Resting his elbows on the surface of the bar, he stared straight ahead and took another swig of his drink.

The gloomy atmosphere of the pub seemed to fit perfectly with the dark anticipation he was feeling. Amidst the dim lighting and the drinking and carousing of what were clearly the local ruffians, Smoker was beginning to feel like a villain himself, and he had no idea why. How many times had he ambushed criminals? How many heads had he taken? How many bounties had he harvested?  
The answer was countless. He was a marine, and that was his job.

But how many times had he done it for personal revenge? How many times had his job proven its unpredictability by taking someone he cared for?

That answer was far easier to count.

He had always tried to remain unfeeling, indifferent even, when dealing with criminals. But once his emotions were involved, he found himself having a much more difficult time.

And that was why he also found himself slamming his sixth beer down onto the bartop and signaling the bartender for another.

"Heh, your money," the bartender mumbled as Smoker flipped a coin at him.

The man swiftly caught it and slid another drink over to the commodore, peering down at him over round glasses.

"You here looking for pirates?"

Smoker gave an affirmative grunt and popped off the lid of the bottle with his teeth.

The bartender nodded and scratched the back of his head absently.

"Well, you're not gonna find any around here, I'm afraid," he said, "These are peaceful times. Those guys over there are about as bad as they come around these parts." With a smirk, he gestured across the room to a group of burly men bickering over who could chop down the tallest tree.

Smoker shot an uncaring glance at the men before turning back, pulling two cigars from his coat pocket and lighting them.

"Oh, they'll be here alright. I have no doubt…." he muttered, smoke billowing from his nose as he exhaled.

The bartender frowned.

"Sir, I know you're with the World Government, but don't go looking for trouble in our village just so you can get your hands on a couple of bounties and a paycheck! The mayor wouldn't----!"

"These aren't just _any_ bounties…." Smoker mumbled again and turned away dismissively, clearly putting an end to the unfolding conversation.

_And it's more pay__**back**__ than it is a pay__**check**__….. _he thought to himself as the bartender walked away, eying Smoker with suspicion.

Taking another look around the pub, Smoker wondered if there was any possibility the Mugiwara crew would stop there and make his search for them that much easier. But it was a bit too musty for their taste, and he had a hard time believing their teenage captain would prefer the company of grumpy old men when he could enjoy the fresh air of the busy marketplace conveniently located by the shipyard instead.

The fool. He'd hide in plain sight. Hell, he wouldn't even try to hide at all.

Suddenly, the door to the street swung open, and in rushed a marine soldier, looking quite flustered and frantic, the daylight shining into the bar making several men blink and swear.

With a distracted salute, he quickly approached Smoker, who had glanced over at him uneasily.

Smoker knew exactly why the marine had come, and he inwardly cursed the inventor of anxiety. Since when did he get so nervous on a mission?

"Sir, the Straw Hats' ship has been sighted, sir! Arrival time within the hour, sir! Sir, they appear to be heading right for this village, and their ship is flying the skull and crossbones, sir!"

"You don't say….," Smoker grunted sarcastically. _His _damn nerves may have been kicking in, but this guy was a wreck. He smirked. "Did you happen to notice what the Straw Hats' jolly roger was wearing?"

The marine's eyes widened in visible panic. "S-S-Sir! N-No, I-I didn't!" he stuttered. "P-Possibly a stolen necklace, o-or an earring….These are pirates after all, sir! But I-I'm sorry, sir, I didn't notice! Unless by 'wearing', sir, you mean its facial expression, which was most likely menacing, sir, but I didn't get a close enough look at the Straw Hats' flag, sir, and---!"

"Alright, alright! I get it! And, dammit, quit calling me 'sir'!" Smoker interrupted, but couldn't help but chuckle darkly at the jumpy marine in front of him. Messing with the new recruits never ceased to make him feel better.

"Has our ship been moved from the main dock?" he inquired, removing his cigars from his mouth and grinding them out in a nearby ashtray.

"Sir, it----I-I mean, Commodore Smoker, sir! Er, I mean----H-Hai…" The soldier nodded feebly, his face reddening.

Smoker nodded as well. "Good. I don't want any of the Straw Hats knowing we're here. We'll keep a close eye on them, but they can have their fun for a while. We'll wait for the opportune moment to strike. When they're separated, caught off guard….." He trailed off, envisioning the scenario.

Their captain was always running off on his own, stirring up trouble, and the others would surely split up when shopping for supplies. Hell, and even the _marines_ knew that their first mate possessed no sense of direction whatsoever.

Yes, if executed properly and with the element of surprise, it would work.

But Smoker was not an idiot. He knew there was no way his little squadron would be capable of going through with it flawlessly. They were sure to bungle things up somehow.

He couldn't do it alone. It wasn't possible. Not without his second-in-command.

He shook his head with a growl. He had to do it. He was their leader, and his strength was needed.

Fixing the marine with another steely look, he stood up.

"First priority is Zoro. If we can get him, the others will come chasing after. Understood?"

"Yes, si---yes."

"Alright. Now go spread the word. Dismissed."

Saluting again, the soldier scampered out the door as quickly as he'd come.

With a sigh, Smoker grabbed his beer off the bar and took another long gulp.

That damn swordsman as the first priority? Looked like he'd yet again be letting Straw Hat off the hook.

~~(^^^)~~

"SHIMAAAAA!!!! SHIMA SHIMA SHIMA!!!!"

Tashigi jolted awake as Luffy's excitement over the newly sighted island floated through the ship. Well, more like trembled, crashed, and exploded through the ship as she heard the ecstatic captain go racing by her bedroom door, his voice soon streaking by the window, signaling that his happiness had been carried outside.

She giggled and sat up in bed, rubbing the sleep from her eyes, listening to the others clambering outside after him.

_Must always be like this,_ she thought and couldn't help but marvel at how quickly the crew had bounced back from their hard partying the previous night. After all, they had been up well past midnight, singing and drinking and----.

Suddenly, her eyes widened as she remembered what _she_ had been up to as well. More specifically, her and _Zoro_.

Tashigi's face flushed, a sudden giddiness overcoming her, causing her to squeal slightly. Grinning widely, she shook her head back and forth, trying to snap herself out of it but to no avail.

It hadn't meant anything, right? They'd both had too much to drink, that was all….

But no, she had only been slightly buzzed, of that she was sure. And he hadn't even been hanging out with the others, so unless he's snuck some booze outside with him, there was no way he had been drunk either.

Still smiling, she swung her legs over the side of the bed, playing with the hem of the blankets.

_Besides, _she thought, _if I'd been wasted, I wouldn't remember it all so clearly._

The feel of his lips on hers, strong and coarse, yet soothing.

His hands gently brushing her hair back as she pulled in closer to him, fingers lingering gingerly on her cheek, the small gesture in stark contrast to the power his kiss exerted.

And the utterly bewildered, yet adorable expression he'd worn as he pulled away, two longer, tousled clumps of hair falling neatly over his forehead, making him appear younger (and cuter) as he stared at her in shock of what had occurred.

Yes, she was most definitely in love.

It was silly really, not to mention clichéd, the marine falling for the pirate. And who was to say he felt the same?

But as she looked across the room at her Shigure resting on the desk, Tashigi couldn't help but think that his kiss and the trust he'd placed in her, meant a whole lot more.

~~(^^^)~~

Well, he had kissed her. There was no turning back now.

Zoro hadn't shown his face to anyone since his valiant fleeing of the scene, and his stomach growled, voicing its complaints about his solitude. He sure had been spending a lot of time in the crow's nest lately.

But Luffy's shouts from below had him looking out the window at the looming island in the distance. He'd have to face her sooner or later. Before she went back to being a marine….

With a chuckle, he sighed. _She'll either want to slap me or kiss me again…,_ he thought, and he had a feeling it would be the latter judging by the way she'd responded the night before.

Turning on his heel, he crossed the room to the weapons closet to grab his swords, feeling a strange mixture of eagerness and nerves that he wasn't used to.

For once he found himself admiring the damn cook's confidence around women.

This was entirely new terrain for him. Saving damsels in distress, kissing girls, falling in love. The last few days had felt like some twisted romance novel straight off of Robin's bookshelf.

He sure didn't see himself as a romantic, but he'd had time to think about it, and the future world's greatest swordsman had to be up for anything.

Taking a deep breath, he walked over to the hatch, swords in hand.

"I am gonna get _so_ much shit from Curly Brow over this….," he muttered to himself.

~~(^^^)~~

"Oi, Luffy-bro! You're getting drool all over Sunny!"

Ignoring Franky's complaints, Luffy, who was lying on his stomach spread out on Sunny's head in a puddle of slobber, continued to salivate, mouth hanging open as he smelled the air.

"I can't help it, Franky! The food smells SO GOOOODD!!!" he moaned, clearly tortured by the heavenly aroma of meat wafting from the still far-off marketplace. "When are we gonna laaaand?"

"We'll get there when we get there, Luffy! Besides, you just ate breakfast! You can't possibly be hungry already!" Nami exclaimed as she approached the whining captain, Robin, Sanji, and Tashigi coming up behind her as well.

"Yes I cannnn….need foooood….," and he flopped his face down onto Sunny, muffling his groans.

"We're so hungryyy….," Luffy's voice was soon followed by Usopp's, Brook's, and Chopper's who had all appeared at the front of the ship too, mouths gaping in their apparent starvation.

"Oi! I just fed you too!" Sanji cried, bopping the three on the heads with his heel.

Franky sighed and shook his head. "We're gonna need to stock up on cola. Coup de Burst used most of it up."

Sanji nodded, then turned to Nami with hearts in his eyes. "And Nami-san, my sweet, could you maybe spare me some extra beris for food shopping? Those imbeciles ate most of our rations~~~!"

"Urgh, fine….," Nami grumbled, an aggravated tick appearing in her eyebrow. "But only because it's necessary for survival! You hear that everyone? No wasting money on souvenirs this time! We need to stock up on _real_ supplies!"

Tashigi smirked at the following chorus of protests from the boys of the crew and turned to glance at the shipyard in the distance, resting her hand on her Shigure.

No Navy ships were docked.

She frowned. That was strange. She had been sure Smoker would beat them there. After all, they had been planning on stopping at that port for several days beforehand. But it was probably for the best. She could wait for Smoker there, and the Straw Hats could get in and out without any further trouble from the Marines.

She sighed at the thought of leaving. In just a few days' time, this merry crew had taught her so much, made her rethink everything she thought she knew about pirates, and she was extremely grateful.

Tashigi turned back to face the crew. Their arguing had died down, and she smiled.

"Hey, everyone?" she began, "Listen, I---."

But she stopped at the sound of a sudden footfall on the deck behind her, and she turned.

Zoro had climbed the stairs to the upper deck and was now standing sheepishly at the back of the group, right hand clasping his swords anxiously.

He appeared to have taken a shower, his wet unruly hair spiking up in several places despite his attempts at combing it down, and he had exchanged his typical white shirt and haramaki for a black button-down which he had conveniently left _un_buttoned, the long sleeves rolled up to his elbows.

"What's goin' on?" he mumbled, trying to avoid eye contact with Tashigi.

No sooner had he arrived than Nami spoke up, a smirk spreading mischievously across her face as she raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, look!" she said, "Zoro actually changed his shirt today! It's a miracle!"

Robin smiled as well. "Yes, you _do _look quite dashing, Mr. Swordsman!" She chuckled and looked at Tashigi. "Wouldn't you agree, Shōi-san?"

"Well, I….umm…..," And upon finding she had lost her voice, Tashigi was forced to settle for a brief nod and a whispered, "I guess…"

"Jeez," Zoro grumbled quietly. "Since when do you all care what I look like….St-Stop staring at me! Bunch of creeps….," Feeling his face turning red, he quickly turned away, suddenly embarrassed.

Eventually, everyone averted their gaze and went back to their previous business, save for _her._ He could feel Tashigi's eyes boring into him, and he couldn't suppress a smile from twitching at his lips.

Finally, Zoro mustered the courage to glance back over his shoulder, just in time to see Luffy (that jerk) pull her away to the railing as he pointed excitedly at something in the distance.

With a smirk, he slipped his hands into his pockets, finding it was now _his_ turn to stare. However, his view was suddenly blocked by a certain swirly-browed chef who had now begun to circle him, a suspicious expression on his face.

"The hell! _What?_" Zoro whispered harshly, growing increasingly uncomfortable under Sanji's scrutiny.

"Nothing, nothing!" Sanji replied, holding his hands up as he backed off a step. He then looked back and forth between Zoro and Tashigi several times. "Just….never thought I'd see the day, that's all….," he said, grinning wickedly.

"What're you---?! Who says I even---!" The swordsman stammered, finding himself growing more and more flustered by the minute. But Sanji interrupted him.

"Zoro," he deadpanned, fixing him with a look that clearly read, 'It's obvious, you dork'.

Said-dork growled in return. "Well, why do you care, dartboard?"

"I don't, _marimo_, you can like whoever you want. After all, she is breathtakingly beautiful! Her eyes sparkle with an air of intelligence and power, her neck giving way to the ethereal curves of her----!"

"Alright, I get it!" Zoro spat, voice lowering to a whisper again. _It's not like I haven't seen….., _he thought. "What's your point?"

"My _point_," Sanji replied, "is that you'd better watch your step, okay? I know you're seriously lacking in the experience department, but I'm telling you if you even _think_ about hurting her, you'll hear from me personally!" he exclaimed, giving Zoro a poke in the chest.

The aggravated swordsman merely whacked the cook's hand away. "Why the hell would I ever hurt her, dammit?" he said through his teeth, still speaking in a low whisper. "Besides, she's leaving today. It's probably not gonna amount to anything!"

Sanji scoffed. "Well, if you're as sloppy in bed as you are with your hygiene, then I don't blame her for leaving!"

"WHAAAAAAT??!!" Zoro cried, his voice shooting up an octave.

And with that, their tiff turned physical as the two began wrestling around on the deck.

Tashigi turned upon hearing the ruckus and laughed as the others began taking bets as to who would emerge victorious, Nami stomping them both on the head to get them to stop.

Eventually, they broke apart, one with a snarl on his lips as he stood up, his still-wet hair now even more ruffled, the other remaining on the ground, trying to recover from a mellorine attack.

Tashigi realized she was going to miss this.

And so, with the entire crew now present, she decided to try again.

"Um, guys? C-Can I say something?"

Everyone's heads turned at once to look at her, and she felt her face redden but continued.

"I….I just want to thank you, all of you, for being so good to me these past few days. You didn't have to do anything for me, but the fact that you took me in……doumo arigatou gozai-masu. I'm really grateful," With a small smile, she bowed slightly in thanks. "And…and I know this is probably stupid, but….I hope that someday, we can meet again. As…friends…"

Anxiously, she looked up to find that the others were…smiling.

"Of course, Marine-sis!" Franky cried, and promptly began bawling.

Nami nodded and winked, giving a thumbs-up. "You know it!" she giggled.

"Hai, Tashigi-swan! Love will never keep us apart!" Sanji gushed, floating around Chopper, Brook, and Usopp, who had ceased their starvation complaints and joined Franky in the waterworks show.

Robin was smiling and nodding, as was Luffy, who jumped down from Sunny's head to high-five Tashigi.

He laughed. "We may be enemies, but we'll always be friends! Right, Zoro?" he beamed again, turning innocent brown eyes to the swordsman, who mumbled something unintelligible in return but smirked as well.

Tashigi giggled and nodded. "I guess so! But I'll get out of your way as soon as we land. Just in case Commodore Smoker's already there."

Luffy rolled his eyes, his trademark grin slapped on his face. "Aw come on, the Smokey guy's ship's not even there! You can hang out with us for a _little_ while longer at least!"

"A-Are you sure?" she asked, "I don't wanna cause you any trouble, really!"

"Nahhh, it's fine!" Luffy replied, hopping back up onto Sunny's head, leaning back on his hands and clapping his feet together absently. "And if he asks, just tell him you wanted to try being a pirate for a few days! Maybe he'll even wanna try too!"

"Maybe not….," the others said together, slapping the air with blank expressions.

"Hey, he might! What's that saying? That if you're a marine, and you've got smoke powers, and you're chasing someone, then the _real_ reason you're chasing them is 'cause you want to join their crew…? Is that how it goes?....Guys?....Guys?!"

Luffy looked up and facefaulted to find that the rest of his crew had walked away.

~~(^^^)~~

"MESHIIIIIIII!!!!!" The excited captain led the charge as the crew climbed down off the ship onto the dock, the air filled with scents of spices and food as the market on the boardwalk bustled with activity.

Countless stands lined the street selling everything from produce to live animals.

With so much to choose from, Luffy trembled with eagerness. "Gotta find a restaurant! Later, guys!" he called and began sprinting off, nearly knocking over several pedestrians in the process.

"Matte, Luffy!" Nami yelled after him, and he stopped to jog in place, looking back at her. "I haven't given you any money yet, baka!"

"Well, then come with me! Let's go, I'm hungry!" And laughing, he stretched his arm out to take her hand, dragging the surprised redhead along with him.

"I never said tha----GAHHH!!! LUFFY!! Jeez!!! Meet back at the ship in three hours, everyone!" Nami called frantically before the two disappeared in the crowd.

"Be careful with her, Luffy!" Sanji exclaimed angrily, before quickly turning to face Robin. "Robin-chan, may I assist you in any of your shopping endeavors today, mademoiselle?"

"That would be very helpful, Cook-san." Robin replied with a smile, and the two headed off as well, Sanji skipping along behind the dark-haired archaeologist, eager to become a pack-mule.

"Oi, Franky!" Usopp piped up. "Think they have a gear shop here?"

"Ow! Probably!" Franky smirked, striking a pose before leading the way into town. "I can show you what kind of cola we need too!"

Brook chuckled. "Yohohoho~~~! What an interesting place! Chopper-san, I'll bet they have a cotton candy factory here!"

"SUKEEEE!!!!" The little reindeer was beside himself with joy. "You think so?!"

"Yohoho! Let's go find out!"

And with that, Zoro and Tashigi were left alone together for the first time since the previous night's events.

Zoro shifted uncomfortably and was about to head back onto the ship when Tashigi reached out towards him.

Unable to react, he found himself blushing wildly as she straightened his shirt collar, then ran a hand through his hair lightly before patting his shoulder.

"I approve," she said with a nod.

"Glad _someone_ does….," he muttered.

She laughed, taking his hands in hers. "Your captain says I'm allowed to stick around a while. Shall we see if there's a sword shop around?"

He frowned. "Someone needs to guard the----."

"Oh come on! It'll be fun! Just for a little bit!"

Snorting, he raised his eyebrows, his cheeks still quite pink. "Is this like a date?"

Tashigi shrugged. "Only if you want it to be. Or at least as close as a marine and a pirate are gonna get anyway."

Before he could think otherwise, Zoro found himself nodding and following behind her as she led him down the dock, and he couldn't help but smile.

~~(^^^)~~

"Well there they all are! Looks like the Straw Hats are here…" The marine said quietly as he peered through his binoculars from across the marketplace, watching the crew split up.

"But it's Zoro we want first, right? The guy with the green hair?" A second soldier asked somewhat warily, clutching his gun tightly.

"Yeah…but it looks like there's someone else with him….who….," Suddenly, the first marine gasped, lowering the binoculars and turning to his companion with wide eyes. "It's…It's Ensign Tashigi!"

"What?!" Grabbing the binoculars, the second grunt gasped as well. "She's alive?! But…how…?"

His comrade shrugged, a look of disbelief still plastered on his face. "No idea! Unless….oh no! You don't think the Straw Hats could have taken her prisoner, do you?"

"No way! She's too strong for that! But still, we have to tell Commodore Smoker!"

"Hold on! Let me look again." And taking back the binoculars, Marine Number One studied the situation again. After a long pause, he said, "Y'know, it actually kind of looks like….._she's_ leading _him_ away! Maybe…..maybe she's leading him to a trap! Yeah! That has to be it! I bet her and the commodore planned this! Gain their trust so we can capture them!"

After mulling it over for a second, Marine Number Two nodded enthusiastically. "Hai! Ingenious! But…what should we do?"

"We'll tell the others, then we'll follow Zoro as planned, but stay out of sight. Then at the right moment, when we're sure Tashigi's got him, we'll take him down!" The marine grinned triumphantly, clearly very proud of the scheme he'd just concocted.

"Right!" exclaimed his companion, and the two ran off through the crowd to alert the other subordinates.

~~(^^^)~~

_**A/N**__**: **__YAHOOOOOO!!! FINISHED!!! I made it extra long to make up for my long absence! ^^; Sorry if it's a tad boring at parts….this was kind of a filler chapter I suppose… _

_I'm also planning on making some illustrations for this story that I'll post on my deviantART page (the link to which can be found on my profile) so keep your eyes peeled for that (eww that's such a gross expression…_)! _

_THANKS FOR READING! I like reviews. THANKS FOR READING!_


	7. Changes

**_A/N_****_: _**_Guhhhh another long break….sorry guys! ^^; I really need to be more consistent with my updating!_

_Not gonna lie, I had some writer's block with this chapter. I knew how I wanted it to end, but it was the whole beginning and middle that needed development…kiiiiinda important hehe. But there's a lot more ZoroxTashigi action in this chapter! That's a good thing, right? =P _

_And I also corrected some inaccuracies with the Japanese usage and the rankings of Marines. If you find anything else that needs changed, please let me know! :D_

_Okay, enough rambling! Here goes nothin'! CHAPTER SEVENNN!!! Enjoy!_

~~(^^^)~~

_How the hell can she be so freakin' calm?_, Zoro thought to himself as he and Tashigi weaved their way through the marketplace. It wasn't even noon and the street was already bustling.

She was a few steps ahead of him, her fingers intertwined with his lightly, perusing the stands with a small smile on her face.

He, on the other hand, was a mess of nerves. His heart was racing, and he looked around anxiously, digging his free hand through his hair. He stumbled forward slightly as she tugged him along.

She was starting to scare him again. Here was that control she'd had on him earlier, that way she had of making him lose the ability to function, causing the whole world to blur around him, while she remained in focus.

But what scared him the most was that, despite his nerves, and despite the fact that the only ways he could think of to release this tension were to either kiss her or die of cardiac arrest first….despite all that, he still wanted to be with her.

He glanced back over at Tashigi as they walked and silently wished she would let him have his hand back for a second or two so he could try to breathe again. Or at least wipe it off on his shirt or something. His palms were starting to sweat.

If she liked him so much, why didn't _he_ have this effect on _her_ as well? He sighed. Maybe he'd never understand women. They were always leading him in different directions and never let on to what they were thinking.

And so, not fully aware that he'd spoken aloud, Zoro asked, "Where are we going? I thought we were going to the sword shop…."

Tashigi turned and, with a fleeting smile, slowed to walk beside him.

"We are!" she replied, suddenly stopping at a flower stand, admiring the vibrant blossoms.

"Then why are we just wandering around aimlessly?" he grumbled, pausing in surprise as she stuck a blue-petaled bouquet under his nose. "And….smelling flowers…..too…" he added with a blush.

She laughed. "Well, _I_ don't know where the swordsmith is, do you?"

"No…" he replied tentatively.

"Exactly!" she smirked, replacing the flowers and taking his hand again as they started walking once more. "Why don't you ask someone for directions?"

"No way! I-I can figure out where it is! Come on!" he stammered, before marching ahead several steps, his hand still mysteriously clasping hers.

However, she pulled him back, causing him to turn and fix her with an irritated expression.

"Why are you so nervous?" she asked, tilting her head slightly as she studied him, clearly amused.

"What?!" he cried, doing his best to appear utterly astonished at the absurdity of her accusation. "M-Me! Nervous? Puh, y-yeah right! What makes you think----?..........Well why are you so relaxed, huh?" he blurted out, finally deciding that by calling _her_ out, he could avoid further questioning.

"Excuse me?" she laughed, putting her hands on her hips.

"You heard!" Zoro crossed his arms. "You're just prancing around, dragging me behind like an idiot, actin' like you know something I don't! People are starting to stare!" For emphasis, he shot a warning glance at a passing man who hadn't been paying them any attention. Upon seeing the passerby sidestep away with a confused look, Zoro turned back, satisfied that the man hadn't been gawking. "Maybe _that's_ what's freaking me out so much….if anything…." he mumbled, rubbing the back of his head.

Tashigi chuckled again before dropping her hand onto his shoulder. "Zoro, you're being ridiculous. I am not _prancing_! Chill out, okay? No one cares that we're together!" she said, trailing her fingers along his earrings so that they tinkled together like mini wind chimes.

He gulped. "I know, I just-----jeez, cut me a break, woman, I'm new at this!" he replied tightly.

With a smile, she adjusted her glasses as she continued to peer up at him. To be honest, she wasn't sure where her newfound confidence had come from. It wasn't like she'd been involved with many men before.

**_Any_**_ men_, her subconscious corrected.

But life in the Marines didn't give her time for relationships, especially not after they'd entered the Grand Line. And she supposed the pirate life hadn't given Zoro many opportunities either.

So here they were, both inexperienced, on what would probably be their last chance at forming any connection.

Chuckling, she shook her head. "Let's just keep walking," and she strolled forward, Zoro following sheepishly.

Scanning the buildings on either side of them, Tashigi looked for a sign indicating the presence of a sword shop, but soon found herself lost in the moment. A gentle summer breeze blew through the street, tousling her hair, and sunlight bounced off the pavement to warm her face as they walked. Feeling Zoro's hand squeeze hers softly, she turned to look at him again, but his head was turned, and he didn't seem to realize he'd done it.

She couldn't help but smile. He appeared to be deep in thought, brow furrowed as he tapped his fingers lightly on the hilt of his katana, and she opted not to bother him.

_What would Smoker think if he could see us now….?_ Tashigi thought. He'd be pissed, she knew, but once Smoker found out Zoro had saved her life, he'd have to let him go…..right? She bit her lip as another thought crossed her mind.

_What if he thinks….they captured me? Or worse…if he thinks I'm….dead…._ Damn. Smoker would surely be out for blood then. As much as he teased her, she knew how much she meant to him.

But if he _was_ out to kill……who would she side with? The Marines? She was one of them, and it was where her duty lied. But what about her heart…..?

Once again, she felt Zoro's strong hand in hers, and she shook her head, deciding to banish the thought from her mind. She refused to think about it. It was too complicated a notion to ruin the easiness of the moment.

And so, with a clear head, she brought herself back to the market, where she wasn't a Marine, or a pirate for that matter. She was simply there.

She was just beginning to enjoy herself again when an exaggerated sigh from a certain green-haired swordsman caused her to turn to him with a questioning look.

The same pensive expression marred his face, and, feeling her stare, he glanced at her for a moment, eyebrow raised with doubt, before quickly looking away again.

Tashigi let out an aggravated sigh of her own. "What _now_?" she asked, not understanding the swordsman's discomfort.

He waited a beat before answering. "This doesn't seem like a real date to me…," he muttered with a shrug.

At this, she stopped walking and spun to face him head-on with a smirk, stopping him in his tracks. "Oh yeah? Why not?"

Zoro shrugged his shoulders again and shifted uncomfortably, yet again avoiding eye contact with her as his face grew red. "Well, aren't we supposed to go out to eat, sit around, and talk about our lives?"

She laughed. "Not necessarily, no." Releasing his hand (which he immediately shoved in his pocket), she straightened her glasses, eyeing him mischievously. "Besides, I already know about your life."

He raised his eyebrows and looked truly surprised for a second before catching on to her sarcasm. "Oh you do, huh?" he replied, a sly grin spreading across his face.

Tashigi nodded. "Sure. Your girlfriend died, forcing you to leave and become a pirate----Although, why you'd choose to be a pirate, I don't know. There are plenty of other _legal_ ways to pursue your dreams." She paused with satisfaction as his eyes narrowed before she continued. "But anyway, you joined a crew, then one day you ran across _innocent_ me and I just _happen_ to look like the dead girl. And that pissed you off, but for some reason, you were intrigued, and now, through some crazy turn of events, we ended up together, and you can't stay away from me!"

He rolled his eyes, unimpressed, and crossed his arms, grinning nonetheless. "Oh yeah? Well I know about you too, woman! For one thing, you never shut up!"

She scoffed. "That's it?"

"Nope. Your first husband left you for another woman, leaving _you_ to take care of the kids, but you were broke, so you abandoned them and ran away. And because you needed money, you decided to join the Marines since that was a lifelong dream of yours. _But_ you ended up getting stuck serving an asshole of a captain who has a weird obsession with chasing Luffy."

"Haha, funny," she retorted sarcastically. "And all before I turned twenty-one too." She turned away for a moment, fixing a thoughtful gaze on her Shigure. "You're partly right though….It's always been a dream of mine to become a Marine……" she added quietly.

Another moment of silence passed between them before the swordsman's sneering voice cut through the air again. "Well, no offense, but you kinda suck at it."

"What?!" she cried, whipping her head up, and whacking him on the arm. "How exactly do I 'suck' at it, you jerk?!"

"Look at yourself!" he said, snickering as he backed away from her. "You're out on a so-called 'date' with a pirate, and you haven't made any move to try and capture or kill me or anything!"

"Well, how do you know this isn't a trap?!" she fumed, advancing upon him with narrowed eyes. "How do you know I don't have spies everywhere watching us right now just waiting for me to get you alone so they can strike?!"

"You wouldn't dare." Zoro replied with a smirk, stepping towards her as well.

"Oh, I wouldn't dare, huh? Well, if I'm a sucky Marine, then you're a sucky pirate! I don't see you trying to kill me, _Roronoa_!" she huffed.

His eyes glittered with amusement. "Pirates don't attack marines unless they're attacked first. Didn't you hear what Nami said?"

"Really now," Tashigi replied skeptically. "Well I guess I can't help it if I've got too much potential for my own good!"

"You lousy----!"

"ZOROOOOO!!!!!"

The two stopped mid-argument upon hearing a third familiar voice scream Zoro's name from down the street.

"The hell?" Zoro muttered, scanning the crowd for the source of the noise, and just barely caught a glimpse of a certain elated pirate captain across the square who was waving to him frantically. A second later, said-captain began stretching his arms to grab onto a nearby streetlight.

"Gomu Gomu nooooo…."

"Ah, shit!" Zoro swore, face screwing up into a pained expression in anticipation of what was to come.

"What?" Tashigi asked, peering around him to see what was going on. "Is that Luffy?"

"Doesn't matter! Just duck, run, take cover, _something_! Go! I mean it!!!" he stammered, shoving her quickly to the side as he shot an anxious glance back over his shoulder.

"ROCKETTTT!"

And Luffy shot forward at top speed, releasing his hold on the streetlight and soaring over the marketplace before hurtling right into Zoro with a rubbery snap. The impact sent them both skidding down the street in a cloud of dust, a pile of wooden crates stopping them as they crashed.

The dust cleared to reveal Luffy sprawled out over Zoro, completely unscathed as he giggled uncontrollably. The marimo, on the other hand, groaned pitifully from underneath several crates, unable to move with his captain pinning him down.

"Shishishishi~~! I finally found you, Zoro! I've been lookin' all over the place!" Luffy said with a huge grin, standing up and brushing himself off. When Zoro didn't reply, he glanced down at the mountain of boxes that had buried his unmoving first mate. "Oi, Zoro! Why are you sleeping under all those crates? That's such a weird thing to do in the middle of town!" And with that, he began laughing all over again, holding his stomach jovially as he was overcome with hysterics.

"Are you two okay?" Tashigi called, maneuvering through a group of baffled pedestrians to jog over to the site of the crash-landing.

Luffy looked up, still smiling. "Oh yeah, I'm fine! But Zoro fell asleep under there!"

A clattering sound emerged from under the debris. "Oh I fell asleep, huh? Well you're lucky you didn't _kill_ me, you moron!!!" Zoro cried, shoving the crates off him to yell at Luffy with jagged teeth, a large red skid mark across his face.

"I wasn't trying to _kill_ you! I was just looking for you and wanted to get over here faster, what's so wrong with that??! Jeez!"

Tashigi sweatdropped when the two began arguing with each other. Suddenly, a thought came to her.

"Hey, Luffy, I thought Nami was with you," she said, interrupting them.

He turned, all traces of a confrontation disappearing from his face. "Yeah! But she wanted to go shopping for clothes so we split up. Y'know it's funny….she wouldn't let _me_ buy any souvenirs but _she's_ allowed to shop for clothes…." He scratched his head, then shrugged. "Oh well!"

"Well then why the hell did you need me so bad?" Zoro grumbled, rubbing his head as he glared over at Luffy.

Luffy's face lit up with excitement and a huge shiver passed through him. "Oh yeahhhh!!! It's 'cause I was walking and I saw the coolest thing EVER! Come on, you have to see it! Tashigi, you'll like it too! Let's go!" he cried, and taking them both by the wrist, he proceeded to take off running, dragging them behind with no time to react.

"Dammit, Luffy! Where are you taking us?!" called Zoro as they tore through the streets, almost losing his footing as Luffy whipped them around a corner to arrive on the next block.

"You'll see!" Luffy laughed. Gathered at the next intersection was a throng of people, clearly entertained as they watched whatever spectacle was taking place on the sidewalk in front of them. "Phew! He's still here!" Luffy gave an audible sigh of relief and halted abruptly at the edge of the crowd, the suddenness of his stop causing Tashigi and Zoro to stumble forward and collide with two unlucky spectators.

"Come on guys! You gotta see it, you gotta see it, you gotta SEE IT!" Holding onto his hat as he jumped up and down, Luffy proceeded to shove his way to the front of the crowd, quivering with excitement all the way.

Muttering their apologies to the people they'd smashed into, Zoro and Tashigi exchanged skeptical glances before stepping through the onlookers to join Luffy.

Everyone was circled around an eclectically dressed man standing on the street corner resting his palms on the hilts of three swords as he scanned the crowd with a confident glance.

"And now, watch and be amazed as I attempt to swallow all three of these swords at once!" The man called out loudly, unsheathing the swords to reveal their true sharpness.

Luffy could barely handle himself as the performer began. "SUKEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!" he cried, eyes dazzling with tears, throwing his arms up in the air in an animated flourish. "IS THAT NOT THE MOST AWESOME THING YOU'VE EVER SEEN??!!! HE'S DOIN' THREE NOW!!!!! AAAAAHHHH!!! ZORO IT'S SO COOL!!!! HE'S ACTUALLY EATING THEM!!!"

"Oi, oi, Luffy, get a hold of yourself!" Zoro mumbled. "It's really not _that_ exciting…." He turned, fed up, to roll his eyes at Tashigi.

"Oh _wow_! That's so amazing! I've never seen anything like this before!" Tashigi gushed, hands clasped together in awe as she watched the man slide the third and final sword carefully down his throat.

"You too?!" Zoro smacked his forehead with an irritated sigh.

After several seconds, the man pulled the swords out again, sheathed them, and bowed to the thunderous applause of the onlookers. "Thank you, thank you! Do not try this at home! If, however, you would like to take with you a beautiful handcrafted souvenir to remember this day, please feel free to stop at my store, conveniently located right behind me! Any sword you can imagine, just waiting for _you_ to be its master……"

With another roll of his eyes, Zoro scoffed. "Some business-grabber this guy is….least we found the sword shop. Have you two regained enough of your dignity to go inside?"

He furrowed his brow upon hearing what sounded like a growl coming from his captain. He turned.

Luffy was staring intently at the sword-swallower with a pout on his lips, eyes shaded by his hat as he trembled slightly with clenched fists. "I wanna….eat swords….." he muttered quietly. "Really….._really_ bad…"

Tashigi, having snapped out of her excited trance, looked at him, laughing. "Luffy, he didn't actually eat them! Besides, it takes years of practice to do stuff like that! You could kill yourself if you didn't do it properly!"

The raven-haired boy just shook his head, still staring at the man. "Don't care. I'm gonna learn. I'm actually gonna eat them too….so hungryyyy…." A trickle of drool began pouring out of his mouth. "And this guy's gonna teach me….right…..NOW!" And so, the young captain, in a ravenous fervor, bolted forward, grabbing for the swords.

"GIVE 'EM HERE, MAGIC DUDE, I WANNA EAT THEMMMM!"

The man blinked in surprise and raised an eyebrow. "W-What? N-No, you can't eat them! Besides, if you want them, you'll have to pay for them first! This is quality steel!"

Luffy growled again, still reaching for the swords as the man tried to hold him back. "Gahhhhh!!! Well then I'll eat them in front of people, they can give me money, and I'll buy 'em that way!"

"That won't work! You'll have already eaten them!"

"SO HUNGRY! NEED FOOOOD!" With that, Luffy snatched up the swords and took off down the street as fast as he could, the angry salesman chasing after him in a frenzy.

Zoro groaned as he watched his captain disappear around a corner. "Urghhhh…..that _idiot_….always causing a scene…."

Tashigi blinked and shuddered. "Why would he want to eat them if they've been down that guy's throat…?"

He shook his head. "Ah whatever. Just leave him and hope he doesn't get the rest of us in trouble too." He turned to Tashigi once more. "You wanna take a look in here or not?" he asked, gesturing to the sword shop behind him.

She smiled and nodded. "That's what we set out for, right? Now you can prove to me you're capable of looking at swords _without_ trying to chop your arm off with them first."

He shrugged, smirking as she led him to the door. "My luck's good enough that I can do whatever the hell I want."

"We'll see about that…" she replied with a giggle.

Zoro smiled. Maybe this date thing wasn't such a bad idea after all.

~~(^^^)~~

Smoker frowned as he walked. Maybe letting the Straw Hats roam free hadn't been such a good idea. They were loose in the town and could, therefore, cause all kinds of trouble for them.

No matter though. He had troops stationed on nearly every block. They wouldn't get far. And that Roronoa Zoro would surely run right into them in time.

He sighed, running a gloved hand through his hair. The stuffiness of the tavern had gotten to be too much. He couldn't think. And the salty air of the port was doing nothing but make his thoughts ramble even more.

With an irritated growl, he realized he'd been wandering aimlessly through the streets for over twenty minutes, and no one had alerted him as to the Straw Hats' whereabouts. How long did it take to find a man with green hair anyway? Some squadron he had….

"Commodore Smoker!"

A voice reached him and he sighed again. "It's about time…" he mumbled, and turned around to face the Marine running up to him. "Did you locate Roronoa?"

"Sir, we did!" the scrawny soldier replied. "The plan went through flawlessly! He went into the sword shop! Tashigi's got him cornered for sure! We've got men stationed outside and we're ready to strike at your consent, sir!"

Smoker's eyes widened. He inhaled sharply. "What….did you just say…?" Had he imagined it? Why the _hell_ had he mentioned her name?

"S-Sir, I said, we're ready when you are," the man replied, brow furrowed as he studied the commodore's now-pale complexion. "Is everything alright?"

Suddenly, Smoker lunged forward, gripping the Marine by the shirt collar, roughly pulling him closer. "No! Why did you say Tashigi had him??! What are you trying to say, Marine?!" he exclaimed, breath coming out in huffs and he found that he couldn't stop himself from trembling.

It couldn't be. She couldn't be----.

Shaking slightly, the scared man nodded feebly. "I-It's true! We saw her lead him into the shop! Just like you'd planned…..right…..Commodore?"

Eyes widening further, Smoker released him and stumbled back a few steps, raking his hands through his hair. "She's…..alive…?" And upon seeing the soldier nod in confused confirmation, he felt his heart swell with relief. He had no idea what plan he was speaking of, but he didn't care.

Grabbing the Marine again, he nearly shouted, "And you're positive?! It's really her?!"

Again the subordinate nodded with a nervous smile. "H-Hai, sir! She's got Zoro alone so it's probably better if we strike now."

The Marine jumped, startled, when Smoker let out a small chuckle, which escalated to a full-blown laugh, unable to contain his elation as he grinned widely. "She's alive!" he exclaimed again, rubbing his temple with his thumb and middle finger. He knew he shouldn't believe it until he'd seen for himself, but for the first time in his life, he was having a hard time controlling himself, and his joy was clearly scaring the messenger Marine.

"S-Sir?" he stammered, and thought, _I don't think I've ever seen him smile before…_

He let out a small yelp when the commodore seized him for a third time. "Where is she?!" Smoker cried, "Take me to her!"

"Yes! I-I will! But is it alright if we go ahead and take Zoro into custody?"

"I specifically gave _orders_ to do that so of course it is, you idiot! Now where _is _she??!"

Sweat beaded on the Marine's brow. "I-I'll show you, sir….but…c-can you let me down first?"

Smoker's face turned red, realizing he was still holding the Marine off the ground as he yelled into his face. Slowly, he set him down again with an awkward nod.

"Th-Thank you, Commodore. N-Now let's go! It's only a few blocks from here!"

And with a wary glance back at Smoker, the soldier turned swiftly away from him and began running as fast as he could, Smoker following closely behind, grinning in anticipation.

~~(^^^)~~

The door to the sword shop swung open, and Tashigi and Zoro emerged onto the street again, Tashigi nearly dragging him as he stole longing glances back over his shoulder.

"I feel weird without my swords. You sure about this?" he mumbled, voice almost coming out as a whimper.

She laughed. "Zoro, they're just getting polished! It'll take an hour tops! Nothing to worry about!"

He scowled. "But I could've just done it myself! Now I gotta pay money to get it done professionally….jeez….Nami's gonna kill me. Thanks a lot, woman! Now I'm gonna owe her even _more_ money, dammit!"

Tashigi shook her head. "Hey, I was _trying_ to do something nice! You freak out about the dumbest things, y'know that?"

"What??! And you don't, Miss Oh-No-I-Broke-My-Glasses-and-Now-I'm-Gonna-Make-Some-Guy-I-Just-Met-Work-for-the-Marines-and-Buy-Me-a-New-Pair-Just-for-the-Heck-of-It!?"

She glared at him, putting her hands on her hips. She didn't understand. One minute she was head over heels in love with this man, the next, she was arguing with him like crazy.

"Whatever, Zoro! Why don't we just go back to the ship until your swords are done, how's that?"

"Heck no!" he exclaimed, his voice raising an octave. "I'm not goin' anywhere without my swords!"

"Oh really," she said, advancing upon him with narrowed eyes. "What, you don't think I can protect us? I still have my Shigure, remember?"

He smacked his forehead in aggravation. "Gah! It's not that, woman, I just…..jeez. Fine, whatever! Let's just go," he said and proceeded to march off to his right, grumbling all the way.

Tashigi sighed, jogging to catch up with him. "Zoro, wait! I'm pretty sure it's this way!" And taking his hand, she pulled him the other way.

"No, it's this way!" he insisted, pulling back.

"That's the complete opposite direction from where we came! We need to go back through the market to get to where the ship's docked and that's this way!" She pointed back down the block to what was clearly the busy marketplace from whence they'd come.

"No it's not! Now come on!" Zoro replied stubbornly and again tried to pull her his direction.

"Zoro!" she stopped and took both his hands. "I promise it's this way!" She paused and her eyes flashed as she gave a sly smile. "Don't you…..trust me?"

The swordsman groaned and leered back down at her. "Y-Yes, but what if you're wrong!"

She smirked. "Well, then we'll go your way, how's that?"

Zoro sighed. He knew he was defeated, but he didn't want to go down just yet. In a last act of protest, he began, "I don't---!"

His sentence was cut off, however, by a pair of soft lips brushing against his in a gentle kiss. In that instant, he forgot everything they had been arguing about and his eyes closed. His arms were just reaching for her, when she pulled away suddenly, leaving him to stand in shock, eyes wide, heart pounding.

Still smirking, she fixed him with a playful look as if to say 'Still wanna challenge me?'

No. He did not want to challenge her. That witch.

"Fine….we'll go your way…" he grumbled, but couldn't help a smirk from spreading across his own face as well as she laughed and took him by the hand, tugging him down the street again with a spring in her step.

She had just led him around the corner to the next block when shouts rang out, and Zoro heard the pounding of approaching footsteps.

He looked at Tashigi, but she didn't appear to have noticed.

Confused, he had just begun to glance behind him when-----

"Freeze, Roronoa! You're under arrest in the name of the World Government!"

In an instant, they were surrounded. Marines had come from every direction, cornering them on the street, guns aimed. The sides of the buildings offered them no protection whatsoever, and Zoro instinctively groped for his swords. Suddenly, a pair of rough hands seized him by the neck from behind and shoved him, causing him to fall forward onto his stomach, the same hands wrenching his wrists behind his back as he was caught by surprise.

His head hit the pavement with a sickening thud and he saw stars, the edges of his vision clouding over as he struggled to be free.

A pair of strong, steel handcuffs was slapped onto his wrists, and Zoro felt the cold shaft of a rifle dig roughly into the back of his neck.

The added pressure caused his mounting headache to worsen. He blinked several times, trying to clear his vision and make sense of the voices and people scrambling around him. Orders were being shouted, and the sound of marching feet surrounded him.

Slowly regaining his senses, he sucked in a harsh breath as he remembered.

It was the Marines. Those bastards.

Despite the gun at his neck, Zoro summoned all his strength and started to get up, only to feel a sudden intense pain in his side as one of the soldiers kicked him hard in the ribs, knocking the wind out of him before shoving him back down and holding him there.

"Pretty pathetic, Roronoa! Bet you're wishin' you had your swords now!" The soldier sneered, his slimy voice creeping its way down to Zoro, who was wheezing slightly as he tried to regain his breath.

"Shut the hell up!" he snarled through clenched teeth. "I'll----!"

"Stop this!" A panicked voice cried out suddenly. "Zoro!!!"

Hearing the fear in her voice, Zoro felt a pang of anxiety shoot through his chest. "Tashigi….." he muttered, eyes widening. "No!" With even greater conviction, he once again began writhing under the force of the Marine, his eyes searching frantically above him for Tashigi. "Don't touch her!" he growled, voice deep with fury.

His fear was growing, but now for an entirely new reason. Any control that either of them had had on the situation was gone, and Zoro found himself utterly petrified at just how powerless he was to protect her. Never had he felt so weak. Even on Thriller Bark, he'd still had his life to offer in place of Luffy's, but here…….. Marines couldn't be trusted with an offer like that. The second they took his head, Tashigi would be next.

_Dammit_, he thought furiously. _How did I let it get this far?! _

He winced as the gun was pressed harder into the back of his head and coughed when he felt a boot dig into his side once more.

"Let him go! That's an order!" Tashigi called again, and Zoro looked up to see that she had shoved her way through the surrounding Marines and was holding her Shigure out menacingly as she glared at the man holding him down.

Zoro's fear subsided a bit upon seeing her determination as well as her weapon, but he continued to struggle nevertheless.

The fear came right back, however, when he saw another grunt approaching her swiftly.

"Ensign Tashigi!" the soldier said with a salute. "It's alright, we've got him! Mission accomplished!"

"That's right!" Another said with a smirk. "Gotta admit, you and the commodore sure had us fooled with the whole 'Infiltrate the Straw Hats' plan! We thought you were really dead! But you did an amazing job! And now, thanks to you, Roronoa's finally ours!"

…………………………………

Zoro stopped struggling.

_Ahahahahahaha! Ahahahahaaaa!_

…………………………………

The laughter of the Marines echoed in Zoro's ears as his eyes widened in disbelief of what he'd just heard.

"Plan?! What _plan_?!!" Tashigi's voice cried out, but it seemed distant and muffled beneath the fierce pounding of his heart.

**_Ba-bump……..ba-bump…..…ba-bump…….._**

'_How do you know this isn't a trap?! How do you know I don't have spies everywhere watching us right now just waiting for me to get you alone so they can strike?!' _Her voice replayed hauntingly in his head, her smirk etched in his memory, and his heartbeat quickened its deafening pace.

**_Ba-bump…ba-bump…ba-bump..._**

Of course. Of course they wouldn't hurt her. The signs were there all along; he'd just been too blind to see them. Hell, she'd even tricked him into losing his swords. These were Marines; they couldn't be trusted…………. And she was one of them. She had always been one of them.

He'd trusted his instincts……..**_ba-bump_**…**_ba-bump_**…..and been wrong.

**_Ba….bump…._**

And he felt his heart break with the weight of his failure.

How could his crew trust him if he couldn't even trust his own intuition?

He had thought she really cared…..had thought she was worth caring about…….

He blinked, and the world spiraled back to him, swiftly reminding him of his predicament. His wrists dug into the handcuffs, the skin beginning to grow raw with the chafing as he quaked with anger.

He ground his head into the dirt with frustration before craning his neck to glare up at the bewildered Tashigi, his eyes quivering with intense hurt and rage.

"**_I trusted you!_**" he shouted, letting out a primal growl when the Marine tried to shove his head back down again. "I thought you were different! _Luffy_ thought you were different!"

Tashigi could do nothing but stare back down at the helpless swordsman, the ferocity of his gaze causing her whole body to shake uncontrollably.

"Zoro….." she breathed, right arm falling limply to her side, barely clutching her katana.

Why…..? Why was this happening? Everything had been so perfect and now…..

"No!" she cried, "No, Zoro! I had nothing to do with this! I had no idea any of this was going to happen! Please, you have to believe me! I'd never do anything to hurt you! Zoro, I lo----!"

"Why should I believe you?!" he yelled again and cursed himself when his voice cracked. "I thought you were stronger than this! I thought maybe you actually----!"

His sentence cut off abruptly, and he let out a choked gasp as the Marine rammed him hard in the back of the head with his heel, causing his forehead to slam down once more onto the stone pavement.

"Shut up, pirate! No one cares what you have to say!" he growled, grinding his boot into Zoro's hair painfully for emphasis.

"Bas…..tard…." Zoro muttered, but his speech came out so slurred that the soldier just laughed. He groaned as he felt blood trickle down the side of his throbbing head, and he found himself losing the battle to stay conscious.

Tashigi was calling to him, pleading with him, but he tuned her out, which wasn't hard to do considering both his hearing and his eyesight had gone fuzzy.

He felt his head involuntarily drop to the ground as his vision darkened.

First Kuina……now Tashigi. These damn girls. Maybe this _was_ some messed-up twist of fate.

_They always run out on their promises_….. Zoro thought before everything went blank and he passed out.

~~(^^^)~~

Tashigi could do nothing but watch, horrified, as Zoro lost consciousness, blood trailing down his face and pooling on the light pavement beneath him.

Again, the Marines were laughing, clearly overjoyed with the fact that they had bagged the 120 million-beri swordsman so easily.

"Jeez, I thought we'd never get him!"

"Guess this guy's not so tough without his swords…."

"Hey, someone should go get them from that shop! Commodore Smoker will probably want them!"

Two Marines scurried hastily around the corner to the sword shop, kicking open the door and marching inside to retrieve Zoro's swords.

Tashigi could feel shameful tears stinging at her eyes, but she found she couldn't move, much less brush them away.

'_I feel weird without my swords. You sure about this?'_

He had trusted her, and now look what she had done….. This was all her fault……..

She had been unaware until that moment of a crowd of onlookers that had gathered outside the circle of Marines. Men, women, even some children. They were all murmuring to each other as they dispersed, nodding their approval at what was a "brilliant capture by Ensign Tashigi".

She looked down, eyes shaded by her bangs, and she clenched her fist.

Apparently, she was a hero, and she would surely get a promotion after single-handedly taking one of the Eleven Supernovas into custody.

She should be happy, ecstatic even. A few days ago, this would have been exactly what she wanted. To be standing, a proud Marine, with Roronoa Zoro at her feet, defenseless, with his fate in her hands. She trembled.

One of the Marines began poking Zoro in the head with the hilt of his sword.

"I seriously thought he'd put up more of a fight than this. Kinda disappointing if you ask----."

"_Shut up_."

The soldier looked up, alarmed, to see Tashigi silently drawing her Shigure once more and stepping towards him slowly.

"If you touch him one more time, you _will_ regret it," she uttered, her voice coming out almost as a whisper.

"E-Ensign Tashigi," he said, slightly unnerved. "With all due respect, he's out cold." To demonstrate, he gave Zoro's shoulder a nudge with his foot, and, upon receiving no response, continued, "See? You can drop the act now!"

Tashigi lifted her head to glare at the man, the sheer rage she felt finally unleashing itself as she ran at him.

"What act??!" she cried.

And with that, she twisted her grip on her sword and rammed the dull side of the blade up against the Marine's neck before growling out, "I _said_, leave him _alone_!"

The Marine gulped, Adam's apple bobbing as he felt the cool steel press against his throat.

"Y-Yes, ma'am!" he croaked.

Still eyeing him with contempt, Tashigi nodded and sheathed her sword. Shoving her would-be victim aside, she knelt down beside Zoro, not fully realizing she had reached out to touch his cheek gently.

"_I'm so sorry_….." she whispered, staring down at his still face, the tears threatening to flow again.

Her eyes narrowed and she took a deep breath. "Get these handcuffs off him! Now!" Tashigi snarled.

With a submissive nod, one of the Marines stepped forward, utterly confused as to why their leader was acting this way.

He stopped, however, when the sound of running footsteps reached them, and he looked up.

A second later, Smoker burst through the circle of Marines, followed by the messenger. Quickly, his subordinates stood at attention, saluting him.

"Commodore Smoker! There you are! We captured Roronoa Zoro just like you told us! The plan worked!"

But the Marines' words of praise and congratulations blew past him as he stared at Tashigi, panting heavily.

Yes, it was her. He should have known she wouldn't give up without a fight. She was alive, and he was whole again.

"Ta….Tashigi….you're alive," he murmured quietly, stepping towards her with a growing smile.

"Commodore Smoker! Yes, I'm fine," she said, quickly standing up and bowing to him. "I'm sorry I disappeared. But you have to understand! Zoro---!"

He chuckled, not taking his eyes off her. "Never mind that now," he said absently, still grinning, then turned to his men. "Take Roronoa to the ship! Make sure he's locked up good and tight!" He turned back. "Tashigi….I…."

However, Tashigi had stopped listening. She was staring, terrified, at Zoro as the Marines picked him up and started dragging him off. She couldn't lose him now. He'd never trust her again but she had to try.

She clenched her shaking fists. "I said leave him alone! Did you idiots not hear me?!! _Don't_ touch him! No! _Stop_!!!!" she cried, and nearly screamed when a soldier grabbed her, holding her back as she lunged forward.

"E-Ensign Tashigi, what's gotten into you?! He's the enemy!"

"He's not!!! He's a good man! BRING HIM BACK, DAMMIT! YOU CAN'T DO THIS!"

It vaguely registered to her that she was sobbing now, tears of frustration and guilt running down her face as she struggled to run after him. However, the man was easily twice her size and she couldn't get free. She watched as they took Zoro further and further away. The irony was rich. Hadn't he always remained just out of her grasp?

Suddenly, she turned to Smoker desperately. "Commodore Smoker! Please! You have to stop this! He saved my life! His crew took me in! They're the reason I'm alive right now, can't you see?! They're good people, you have to believe me! COMMODORE!"

She gasped as the Marine released her and she fell forward, letting out a choked sob.

"Tashigi, he must die."

Looking up, her eyes widened and she turned to face Smoker who was eyeing her with his steely gaze. "What do you mean 'he must die'? What has he ever done to you?!" she spat out bitterly.

However, Smoker's expression remained frighteningly calm. "He's a pirate, Tashigi, you know that. It's our duty as Marines to remove him from the world."

She scowled. The tears had ceased for now and she felt only anger. "Well, if it's our duty to simply kill, then I don't want to be a part of it!" With a snarl, she took a menacing step towards the commodore. "KILL ME TOO IF YOU MUST, I WON'T LET YOU HURT HIM OR ANY OF THE STRAW HATS!"

At this, Smoker's face curled into rage. "Stupid girl….." he muttered, and his eyes flashed heatedly. "WHAT ARE YOU SAYING, TASHIGI?! I ALREADY LOST YOU ONCE, I WILL NOT LOSE YOU AGAIN! NOW WE'RE GOING BACK TO THE SHIP WHETHER YOU LIKE IT OR NOT!"

Grabbing her roughly by the arm, he proceeded to pull her forward with him. However, she tore her arm away and quickly twisted to unsheathe her sword as she stumbled back a few steps, holding it out towards him.

"No…..this time you're wrong, Commodore….I'm sorry…"

And turning, she bolted away, shoving through the surrounding Marines and tearing down the street away from what, up until a few days ago, she had thought had been her life.

~~(^^^)~~

**_A/N_****_: _**_OHHHH MY GOSHHHHHH!!! THE PLOT THICKENS!! It's about time, amirite? =P JEEZ this was a long chapter! And it took FOREVER for me to get it up cuz FanFiction wouldn't let me upload the file for some reason! GAH! So I had to shadily copy and paste the chapter into an existing document I had and use that...hehe... Rawrrr again sorry it took me forever to update! Hope it was worth the wait! ^^; Thank ya veddy much for reading!_


	8. Set Sail!

_**A/N**__**: **__*peers out from behind corner* H-Heyyyy there! Hehehe…remember me? That kid who hasn't updated this story in about three months? Well….I'm back! WOOOOT!!! Woooot…..woot…..whoa…hey….what's that look for? Hey! Put those rocks away! HEY WAIT! I'M NOT ARMED!! GAHHH STOP!!! NOOOO!! DON'T PELT ME!! UWAAAHHH!! Okay I'm just gonna post this and RUN! *posts chapter* *sprints away*_

~(^^^)~

Tashigi shoved through the crowd, tears stinging at her eyes as she felt the burning stares of those she streaked by.

She winced as she heard several of the Marines calling out after her, but she refused to look back. This was all her fault; Zoro had been captured because of her and now the whole crew was at risk. She had to warn Luffy and the others. Even if they didn't believe her, she had to try.

Her feet pounded on the sidewalk as she continued to run, the colors and sounds of the market now only a blur. She realized that Smoker wasn't chasing her.

Her life's goal was to bring justice to the world, but she could never have imagined that staying true to her dream would hurt so much.

_Please forgive me, Smoker…._ she thought in silent prayer before cutting through a short alleyway to emerge on the boardwalk once more.

Scanning the docked ships, she recognized the Mugiwara flag and took off toward the _Sunny_.

~(^^^)~

"Urgh, where the hell is he? He's a half hour late!" Nami growled, tapping her fingers impatiently on _Sunny_'s railing. "The log's set, let's _go_, Zoro!" she muttered and whipped around to stomp across the deck to the rest of the crew.

"Do you think he could've gotten lost?" Chopper squeaked from behind Robin's legs, clearly wary of the fuming navigator.

Sanji scoffed. "Ten beris says he did. With our luck, that's exactly what happened. Idiot…." Lighting a cigarette, he sat down on the stairs to the upper deck to wait.

Robin chuckled. "Even with Marine-san to guide him? They're probably just enjoying their time together."

At this, Luffy glanced up from his position on the grass.

"Yeah, when I left them, they were goin' into the sword shop together to do stuff."

Upon hearing a collective groan from his nakama at his choice of wording, Luffy frowned.

"What?"

Usopp rubbed his temples. "Nothing, Luffy…"

The captain merely shrugged and went back to examining three swords he had parked on his lap.

"Oi, Luffy-bro," Franky said, exchanging a suspicious glance with Brook. "Where'd those swords come from anyway?" He crossed his arms and stepped closer to examine the metal. "You didn't steal them, did you?"

"No!" Luffy exclaimed, as if the very notion of his thievery insulted him greatly. "I rescued them! Some weirdo kept eating them and throwing them back up again! _I_ am actually gonna eat them for _real_!" For emphasis, he began nibbling on the hilt of one. "Sanji! Can we have sword stew for dinner?"

"No, you moron!" Sanji cried, standing up to pull Luffy's rubbery cheek until he released the sword from his jaws. "Who are you? Wapol? Jeez!" he scowled. "Although, I might serve it to the marimo if he doesn't get his ass back here soo---!"

"Luffy! Everyone! Hey!"

A frantic voice interrupted Sanji's sentence, and he looked up.

The crew rushed to the edge of the ship.

Tashigi was running towards the _Thousand Sunny_ at top speed, nearly tripping over a raised board in the dock as she reached the bottom of the ladder, panting.

"Oi, Tashigi!" exclaimed Luffy with a grin. "You didn't turn back into a Marine yet?"

However, one look at the woman's panic-stricken face killed his enthusiasm.

"…..Where's Zoro?"

~(^^^)~

Zoro groaned as he began to regain consciousness, head throbbing painfully as he opened his eyes. After blinking several times, he frowned when he found he was no longer on the street. With difficulty, he rose to his knees, wincing at the sudden head rush and pain that shot through his side.

Shrugging it off, he squinted through the darkness and tried to identify his surroundings. Cursing, he realized his hands were still cuffed behind him, and his swords were nowhere to be seen.

And there was someone in the room with him.

"Well, well, Sleeping Bastard's finally awake."

A sneering voice rumbled its way across the room, followed by a plume of suffocating smoke.

Zoro scowled as his eyes adjusted to the light, and he glared at Smoker from behind bars.

He watched as the Marine stood up from his chair and slowly crossed the room, light from the room's only window accenting his harsh features briefly before shadow engulfed him once more. He stopped at the edge of the cell and stared down menacingly at the swordsman.

"You know, this cell quite suits you, Roronoa. Although I can't help but think the guillotine would be even _more_ becoming."

"Could say the same for you, Smoker," Zoro replied.

Smoker growled and clenched his fists, smoke from his cigars creating a hazy cloud around him.

A heavy silence fell between the two, until Smoker's smoldering voice broke it.

"You wanna tell me what the hell you did to Tashigi, you runt?"

Zoro's eyebrow twitched visibly at the mention of her name, but his glare remained unwavering. "I didn't do anything to your little underdog. She's still the bitch she always was."

"You're gonna regret you said that, swordsman," the commodore snarled.

Said-swordsman scoffed. "The only thing I regret is that I saved her life. Heh, yours too at the moment."

Smoker narrowed his eyes, remembering their escape from Rain Dinners, but chose to ignore the comment. "Then explain to me how she got it into her head that you and your crew are 'good people', and that she could talk back to me, hell, even draw her sword against me, deliberately disobey my orders, and run away. All because of your filthy pirate self," he added bitterly.

Zoro's fists clenched and his voice lowered with anger. "….Because she's a lying, cheating coward who can't deal with the consequences of her own stupid mistakes," he spat out before involuntarily muttering, "You're better off without her."

Smoker frowned, unsure if Zoro's last utterance had been meant for him. However, he knew that Tashigi wasn't the only "lying, cheating coward". Zoro and the Straw Hats definitely had something to do with her betrayal, and he would have their heads for it. This time, it was personal.

"It's only fair that you be executed, Roronoa. We can't have you corrupting any more innocent minds," Smoker said, smoke billowing angrily from his nose upon hearing Zoro snort. "Unfortunately for you, this ship is en route directly to Solomar," he glanced briefly at the window. "I'd enjoy the light if I were you. It may be the last you ever see."

And with that, the Marine turned on his heel and marched swiftly to the door.

"I'm not worried, you know," Zoro called as Smoker turned the doorknob. "See, unlike you, I've got nakama I can actually count on! They'll get me out of here. Heck, I wouldn't be surprised if they're hot on your smoky trail right now!" he said with a smirk.

Smoker opened the door and stepped out into the hallway. "That's just what we want, Roronoa," and he let the door slam shut behind him.

Zoro heard a key turn in the lock and he sighed.

So it was real then. Solomar Correctional Facility. The Gateway to Hell. He'd heard stories about it from his days as a bounty hunter. A floating prison and only the Marines knew its exact coordinates.

The optimistic saw it as a second chance for criminals to change their ways and leave as better people. But most knew a prisoner only had three hopes of getting out; Impel Down, leaving as a Marine, or Cleansing.

Of what Cleansing was, Zoro wasn't sure, but he figured it might not be as pleasant as it sounded. Guess he'd find out soon enough.

Giving another sigh, he glanced around the room. Four walls, a chair, and a cell. Oh, and a window whose light he was supposed to brood over.

He moved up against the wall, trying to get comfortable as he leaned back.

"This whole captured thing might actually be interesting if they didn't stick me in such a _boring _room," he muttered to himself and soon found his mind wandering.

He closed his eyes, resting his still-battered head against the wall, and frowned when he realized that _she_ was the first thing he thought of.

She had done him in, betrayed his trust. Yet Smoker's account of the situation didn't add up with his. Had Tashigi really planned it, or was it a mistake like she had claimed?

Either way, he was quite unhappy about the fact that he was stuck in a cell on a Marine ship headed for prison. And if it hadn't been for her, he wouldn't be.

He knew he should hate her, loathe her even, since, after all, Roronoa Zoro was not one to be led around on a leash so easily, only to find himself dumped in a cage (literally).

Yes, he definitely hated her, that lousy, scheming, hypocritical Marine witch.

Zoro hated hypocrites.

And he shook his head with a frustrated groan as he realized he was being one right now. If he hated the girl that much, why was he so worried about her?

No. He wasn't worried. She had turned him in to the Marines, had let him be captured. Once a Marine, always a Marine. He had only been acquainted with her for several days, not nearly long enough for them to form an actual relationship.

The damn woman. Oh yes, he knew he was definitely supposed to hate her.

Another thing Zoro hated. Admitting he was wrong.

~(^^^)~

"Where's Zoro?" Luffy asked again as he and Sanji helped the still-panting Tashigi onboard.

She shook her head frantically, before looking at them all desperately. "The Marines! The Marines are here already, you have to get out of here! They've…..They've taken Zoro, and they'll come after you too if you don't leave _now_! I…I think I know where they're taking him, so if we can set sail, I can help!"

"_Whaaaaat_?!" came the crew's simultaneous reply.

"Well, what're we waiting for?! Let's move! We gotta save Zoro! Raise anchor!" Luffy cried, and, nodding, the rest of his nakama raced to perform the necessary duties.

However, one stayed put. Nami's voice rang out over the ship. "Hold on! We're not going anywhere!"

Tashigi felt her stomach twist, and she turned slowly to meet Nami's steely gaze.

"What do you mean, Nami? The Marines are here! Zoro's been captured! We gotta go!" Usopp exclaimed as the rest of the crew stopped in their tracks as well.

But the navigator kept her glare trained on Tashigi. "No _shit_ the Marines are here! Can't you see?! She tricked us!" And with one swift motion, she whipped out her Climatact, holding it out towards Tashigi. "Now tell us what you did to Zoro!"

"Oi, Nami-san, you---!" Sanji stepped forward, but a glare from Nami shut him up.

"Please!" Tashigi began, "You have to believe me! Marines ambushed us and they took him away! I swear I had no idea it was going to happen! I came back to warn you so I could----!"

"So you could what?! Hold our hands and walk us right into your trap?! I don't think so! Now either get off our ship or we'll make you!" cried the furious redhead.

The others simply stared, rooted to their spots, indecision marring their features.

Tashigi felt her hands beginning to shake again. She knew she could help him, but there was no way they'd listen.

She moved back a step towards the edge of the ship, and reached for her katana. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Nami raise her Climatact higher so she slowed her movements. Unhooking the sword from its place at her hip, she tossed it at the navigator's feet and knelt down, pressing her forehead onto the deck in a silent plea.

"I know you don't trust me now, but I promise this isn't a trap! I didn't know Smoker was here already and if I had known, I wouldn't have led you here. This is all my fault, I understand. I tried to free Zoro, but they stopped me! I was weak. This isn't how justice should be carried out. I have to…make this right." She shuddered and closed her eyes, fists clenching on either side of her head as her voice wavered. "Please, I can help! You don't have to forgive me…..and neither does Zoro. But this is not how Marines should act! Please, believe me, I didn't want this….to happen…I…I'm so _stupid_…" Tears of frustration filled her eyes.

Suddenly, she stopped as she felt a hand land on her shoulder. Her eyes snapped open and she looked up.

Luffy was beaming down at her, and he giggled upon seeing her shocked expression. "It's okay, Zoro _likes_ girls. He insisted! So he'll forgive you," he said with a serious nod. "Now come on! Let's bring Zoro back!" And taking her hand, he stood up with her again. "Right, guys?"

To Tashigi's astonishment, it took the crew all of a second before they yelled a collective, "Right!" and were scrambling to set sail once more. Even Nami hadn't protested and was now standing sheepishly, holding her Climatact limply at her side.

Luffy laughed again as Tashigi smiled. "See?" he said, "I'm glad you're not a Marine!"

And for the first time in Tashigi's life, she found herself agreeing with a pirate.

~(^^^)~

_**A/N**__**: **__I-Is it safe to come out now? Hello? Angry mob, are you gone?.......................PHEW! Guess I'm in the clear! Now I can---- *hit by one more rock* GAH! Jeez! Urghhh I guess I deserved that though. _

_Seriously people, I really am sorry I let this go for so long. School got crazy, but now it's finally winding down so hopefully I'll be able to work on this more! And if not, then graduation's in only a month and two weeks, right? :D Ahehehehehe….hehehe……….heh…. *BAAAANG* *shot* ALRIGHT THAT WAS UNNECESSARY! I'M BLEEDING! _

_Blehhh just awesome…grrr….but I will try to work on this! And I'll try to make a longer chapter next time around, but I figured I owed it to the readers to at least post __**something**__. Anywho….might wanna resharpen your pitchforks just in case. *sneaks away before any more bodily harm is experienced*_


	9. Faith

_**A/N**__**: **__Okay, so this chapter is to make up for the shortness/extreme delay of the previous one! ^^; _

_One Piece is not mine, yada yada yada, ON TO THE STORY!_

~(^^^)~

"Alright so lemme get this straight. Zoro's being taken to a _hula man_?" Luffy asked as he leaned forward, bracing his arms on the table with his brow furrowed.

"No, you idiot! That's not it! How'd you get that out of what she's saying?" Usopp cried, poking the captain in the side of the head, then turning to roll his eyes at the others.

The crew had moved their powwow inside to the kitchen after setting sail, and were now viewing a map of the area Nami had drawn up and spread out on the table. They crowded around for a closer look as Tashigi pointed to a seemingly random spot in the middle of the ocean.

She shook her head. "I'm almost positive they're taking him to _Solomar_, Luffy. It's a prison, and according to what I've been told, it's located at approximately this spot." She tapped the map again for emphasis.

Luffy frowned, studying the indicated spot. He shrugged. "Solomar, hula man, same thing! Either way, all we have to do is get him back!"

Shaking her head again, Tashigi sighed. Resting her elbows on the table, she buried her face in her hands before rubbing her temples anxiously. "I'm afraid it's not going to be that easy."

She looked up as Sanji slid onto the bench next to her, setting down three cups of coffee in front of the ladies. "Relax, Tashigi-san," he said, cigarette puffing out heart-shaped smoke circles. "It's not like we haven't been in situations like this before! Besides, the marimo can take care of himself until we get there."

Tashigi gave a small smile. "That may be, but I don't think any of you seem to realize what this place is. Once he's entered the prison, it's going to be next to impossible to get him out."

Robin took a sip of her drink, studying the map as well. "Solomar Correctional Facility. The name sounds vaguely familiar, but if it truly is such a high-security prison, why isn't it more well-known?"

Hoping it would calm her nerves, Tashigi sipped her coffee too, wincing as the hot drink burned her tongue but feeling its soothing effects nonetheless.

"It's supposed to be a secret of the World Government," she began, "Although, it hasn't been kept so well if pirates have heard of it. Only those serving under the World Government know its exact location though. It's called a correctional facility, but it's anything but that. It's hiding all kinds of nasty secrets."

Nami perked up. "What kinds of secrets? Like, a hidden treasure?" she asked as she looked up hopefully. "We could look; I'm sure we could find it!"

"W-What about Zoro then?" Chopper whimpered, clutching Usopp's arm tightly.

"There's no treasure, it's nothing like that." Tashigi sighed before continuing. "Solomar was created as a place the government could use as a cover-up to avoid any scandal. Criminals are sent there when the government wants to deal with a matter quietly. At least, on the surface. From what I've heard Smoker say about it, it's extremely brutal, second only to Impel Down, the strongest prison in the world."

Robin frowned in thought. "Now that you mention it, I do recall this place being nicknamed 'The Gateway to Hell'. Is it somehow connected to Impel Down?"

"In a way, yes," replied Tashigi. She adjusted her glasses. "But not physically. Solomar consists of a network of floating buildings, almost like a large ship, but my understanding is that, due to the nature of the arrests or crimes of its prisoners, there are only three ways they are allowed to leave. And even so, I wouldn't even call them 'free' afterwards."

Franky grinned. "Well, that's just SUPER! Three ways are better than none, right? What do we have to do?"

"It's not what _we_ do; it's what the _Marines_ decide. Like I said, 'Correctional Facility' isn't accurate terminology at all. There are no corrections made, no questions asked. It's just a name the government uses in case word gets out about it to cover up what really goes on. Robin said 'The Gateway to Hell'. That's exactly it. There's no hope, even if you _can_ get out."

Tashigi looked around at the others who were listening intently.

"According to Commodore Smoker, once there, prisoners are evaluated. Depending on how notorious they are, they could be sent directly to Impel Down, Hell itself. Some are brainwashed, turned into Marines who serve the World Government with no recollection of their past lives. And still others are 'cleansed'. I'm not sure what that means, but I'm sure it can't be good either. So we need to get to Zoro before any of those can happen."

Usopp crossed his arms. "Okay, but if this Impel Down place truly is the strongest, are you sure they didn't take him there? I mean, his bounty's big enough, it would make more sense!"

Again, Tashigi shook her head. "I know Smoker. He wouldn't do that. Not after what happened back there in town." She stared down at the table miserably, her voice getting quiet. "I betrayed him, publicly disrespected him. Some of the townspeople saw the whole thing. If a rumor starts that there may be a conspiracy, it could mean big trouble. Smoker wants to get rid of Zoro, but, due to the circumstances of my absence, he's not going to want to risk explanation at Impel Down. So Solomar it is. It'll be dealt with more quietly there, without making big news of it. Or at least, that's the theory anyway."

She fingered the edge of the map absently. "Smoker and I have never approved of this place, since it punishes people unfairly without so much as a trial. But because of what I did, and because he doesn't want Marine HQ to get involved, he'll take Zoro there. I'm sure of it."

The room grew silent as the Straw Hats processed all that Tashigi had said.

"Well then, we need a plan," Sanji's voice interrupted the silence, and he pushed back from the table, loosening his tie as he began pacing. "Nami-san, how far behind the Marines are we?"

"I'd say about an hour judging by when we left. But they could've taken a different route than us so it's hard to tell. The way we're heading though, we should be there by tomorrow afternoon."

"About twenty-four hours then," Tashigi murmured with a sigh. Would they be too late….?

Sanji nodded. "Right. We have till then to come up with a plan to infiltrate this place."

Luffy slammed his fists down on the table. "Yosha!" he cried, "We're gonna need lots of meat!"

"Yohohoho~! And some sneaky music!" Brook added with excitement.

"And in that case, we'll need some SUPER awesome dance moves too! OW!" cried Franky, striking his trademark star pose.

"AND HOW EXACTLY WILL THOSE HELP US?!" Usopp and Nami yelled, swatting the air.

Tashigi couldn't help but frown at the crew's lack of concern. They obviously didn't understand how difficult, not to mention dangerous, this was going to be.

Seeing Tashigi's apprehension, Robin smiled. "I wouldn't worry too much, Shōi-san. Remember that not everyone knows of your crime. Chances are you'll still have an in with the Marines once we arrive, and that will definitely work to our advantage." Taking a final sip of her drink, she tossed the mug across the room with a nonchalant flick of her hand. "Besides, you of all people should know that things always work out in our favor." An arm bloomed on the counter, catching the flying mug and setting it down in the sink.

Tashigi looked around the table at the rest of the crew.

Luffy turned to give her a thumbs-up. "Don't worry, Tashigi, things always work out somehow! We'll definitely save Zoro from the hula man!"

Another whack on the head from Usopp. "Weren't you listening at all?! H-Have no fear, Tashigi! Captain Usopp will stand by you no matter what the cost!" The table began to shake along with his trembling knees.

"M-Me too!" cried Chopper, blinking back tears as he raised a triumphant hoof.

"And me! I will lay my life on the line!" Brook paused, "Ah, even though I'm already dead! Yohohoho~! Skull joke!"

"You know I'm in! Those Marine-bros won't know what hit 'em!"

Robin chuckled as the blue-haired cyborg ran through a succession of super poses.

"And of course, you know I will protect you with my life, Tashigi-swan!" Sanji added, pointing his thumb to his chest.

The others turned to look at Nami, who was staring down steadily, eyes shaded by her orange bangs. Suddenly, however, she looked up, a crafty grin smeared across her face as her eyes turned to beris.

"I'm in too! As long as we get to pilfer some Marine treasure along the way!"

"THERE'S NO TREASURE!"

Tashigi watched as the Straw Hats began arguing amongst themselves about anything but the situation at hand.

And she smiled with the realization that their behavior didn't warrant a lack of concern but rather an utmost confidence that everything would be alright.

They trusted each other, and they trusted Zoro enough that they were able to remain calm, or at least, calm about the prospect of breaking into a high-security prison. And she had no doubt that Zoro was just as calm and trusted that his nakama were coming for him.

_Hold on, Zoro, _she thought, _I'll prove that you can trust me too….._

~(^^^)~

"6,747……..6,748……..6,749….."

Moonlight was shining in through the window now and Zoro judged that he'd been asleep for about five hours. Bored out of his mind after waking up, he'd taken to doing sit-ups, about the only training he _could_ do with his hands still cuffed behind his back.

"6,750." Finishing his set, he sat up, rolling his shoulders a bit to try and relieve the stiffness in his arms.

"Damn…" he muttered to himself. "If I just had one of my swords, I could be out of here in three seconds…"

He hoped they weren't still at the sword shop. Hell, they'd probably charge him twice as much for picking them up so late and Nami would not be pleased if he asked for a loan.

For once, he hoped the Marines had his swords. At least they'd keep them safe. Even if it was only so that they could mount them on a wall as trophies or something once they killed him.

Zoro let out an irritated sigh and decided to resume his sit-ups.

"6,751…..6,752….."

_Luffy, you idiot, you'd better catch up soon,_ he thought as he stared fixedly at the ceiling, _or else I think I'm gonna die of boredom first._

~(^^^)~

"Commodore Smoker!"

Smoker looked up from the paperwork on his desk and glared with irritation at the Marine who'd just run into his office.

"It's late, soldier, what do you want? Have we strayed off course?"

"N-No, sir," the man stammered, "It's just that another large ship has been spotted in our radar. It's several kilometers behind, but it appears to be following us. Should we turn around and investigate?"

Smoker shook his head. "No. Stay the course. We can't have Roronoa be late for his appointment with fate, now can we."

"Hai. Alright, sir," the marine conceded, "We'll keep an eye on the ship nonetheless." And with a salute, he left Smoker alone once again.

_So, Mugiwara, you're closer than I expected. Thanks to that navigator of yours, no doubt,_ Smoker thought as he leaned back in his chair.

He wasn't too concerned though. Fine, they were following him. But this way he could lock up the swordsman, then turn right around and deal with the rest of his crew.

And Tashigi too. She was with them, he was sure of it. And she would surely try to help them in every way possible.

"Damn you, Tashigi, for making me do this."

He'd always been proud of the fact that in all his years of service, he'd never once had to make use of Solomar. The work he did and the arrests he made were always honest. He'd never had to cover up his tracks or lie about anything, at least, not by his choice anyway. And now he had to cover up for his damn ensign of all people.

Deep down, he'd been afraid something like this would happen some day. She had a big heart and a solid sense of justice, one that was up against the shrinking heart and crumbling values of the World Government. Not to mention she'd been fascinated with Zoro even when she considered him an enemy. She'd narrowed her sight and made him her goal. And now he realized that she would never give that up.

If he wanted his partner back, he'd have to use Roronoa as bait, and to do so, Zoro, in turn, would have to become the government's plaything, away from the media's prying eye. At Solomar.

Smoker knew Tashigi knew this. And he knew he had no other choice.

Standing up from his chair, he walked to the window and gazed out at the stars.

He sighed, smoke billowing from his nostrils, and his lips turned downward into a frown.

He'd always believed in the saying, 'Once a pirate, always a pirate', and similarly, 'Once a Marine, always a Marine.' So if a Marine took the side of a pirate, they had to still be a Marine and, in turn, still have justice in mind, right?

He groaned, rubbing his temples with his gloved hand. Now he was just confusing himself……yet….why was the thought that Tashigi could have been right about the Straw Hats….still in his mind?

~(^^^)~

Tashigi sat on _Sunny_'s lawn as she breathed in the night air, absently polishing her Shigure.

The others had gone to bed and she'd volunteered to man the first watch. It was Zoro's job after all and it was her fault he wasn't there to do it.

The ship rocked gently and the tranquil melody of lapping waves was the only sound heard. Everything was so peaceful; it was hard to believe they would have to face any troubles at all.

She picked at the grass, trying to think of how they would go about this rescue mission, when a voice behind her nearly gave her a heart attack.

"Tashigi?" Chopper's timid voice had Tashigi whirling around to face him in a startled frenzy. She reached her hand out to brace herself, only to have it land in the jar of sword polish on the ground next to her, causing her to slip and land quite gracefully on her face, all while still in a sitting position.

Chopper sweatdropped. "A-Are you okay?" he asked, quickly making his way across the deck to her from his place at the door.

Tashigi sat up slowly, adjusting her crooked glasses sheepishly before reaching up to rub her sore nose.

"I'm fine!" she replied, blushing slightly. "You startled me, that's all."

The reindeer giggled and sat down on the grass beside her. "Sorry about that. If you want, I'll take over for you. I can't sleep anyway."

"That's okay," Tashigi said, rubbing the remainder of the polish off of her hand, and she turned to Chopper with a smile. "It's nice to have company."

Chopper smiled too, then turned to gaze up at the night sky. He sighed, voice getting quiet. "Zoro always says that nighttime's the only time he can hear himself think. That's why he likes having the watch so much. Even if he _is _sleeping half the time," he added, causing Tashigi to chuckle softly. Chopper grinned before continuing, "…..Thank you…..for helping us. Without you, I don't think we would've known where to start."

At this, Tashigi shook her head fervently. "No. Don't thank me. This whole thing is my fault. Commodore Smoker's probably livid with me, but the least I can do is help you now. I just hope Zoro can forgive me."

"He will! Zoro's not the type to hold grudges. Besides, I saw the way he looked at you. I think he genuinely cares about you," Chopper said, pawing at the grass beneath him.

Tashigi turned to look at him, a faint blush playing at her cheeks. "Really?"

The little reindeer smiled up at her and nodded. "Mmhmm! He was staring at you the whole time you were napping on the Mini Merry. I thought about snapping him out of it, but Usopp said he was just fantasizing and to leave him be. I'm not sure what he meant by 'fantasizing' though."

Tashigi facefaulted. "Well then…."

"Anyway," Chopper began, voice getting quiet again as he looked down. She could see the sheen of unshed tears in his eyes and knew he was trying hard to be strong. "Will….will he really be okay, Tashigi? This Solomar place……sounds pretty intense. We'll be able to save him, right?" He turned to look at her hopefully.

She looked down at the little reindeer and realized that these pirates had complete faith in her. They'd only been together for a short time and she knew she didn't deserve it, yet here they were, trusting her as if she was one of their own.

And if she had learned anything, it was that Luffy and his crew could make even the impossible a reality.

With that thought in mind, she nodded and smiled at him with genuine confidence. "I'm sure we can, Chopper! Everything will be fine!"

But to her surprise, Chopper's eyes filled with tears and he pulled his hat down over his face as he began to sob.

"Oh no! Are you okay? I'm so sorry! Have I said something wrong?" Tashigi stammered frantically, laying a hand on his quivering shoulders.

The young doctor shook his head, struggling to regain composure as he wiped at his nose. "That's not it," he sniffed, "It's just….I have so much respect for you! You've been cast aside by everything you loved and held dear, but you've still been able to trust us and stay strong!" Still wiping at his nose, he stared into his lap. "It took me years before I could do that…"

She wasn't sure what he meant by that last bit, but she offered a small smile nonetheless.

"It hasn't been easy….it's been confusing and heartbreaking and I have no idea how I'll patch things up afterwards. But I've always figured that if I follow what I believe in and go where my heart tells me, things will work out. Wouldn't you agree?"

Chopper wiped away the last of his tears and nodded vigorously through a watery smile.

Upon seeing the reindeer cheer up, Tashigi giggled and went back to polishing her sword.

A few minutes passed and the two sat together in companionable silence, feeling the motion of the ship on the waves and listening to the low creaking that accompanied it.

At one point, Tashigi saw Chopper flop down onto his back and she thought he'd fallen asleep, but a minute later, he spoke up again.

"Tashigi, will you stay with us after all this is over?" he asked quietly. "I'm sure Luffy would let you. And the others would love it if you stayed! Even Nami! She didn't mean what she said earlier today; I think she was just PMS'ing more than usual."

Tashigi paused, the question having caught her off guard. Sure, she had thought about what she would do, but she hadn't come to a decision yet.

Hearing her hesitation, Chopper sat up, a small sweatdrop forming on the side of his face as he rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

"Sorry, it probably wasn't my place to ask you that," he admitted, "but really, if things don't work out with Smoker, I honestly don't think anyone would object if you joined us."

Tashigi turned to look at him, and, upon seeing him grin at her with utmost sincerity, couldn't help but smile back.

"Thank you, Chopper," she replied, "That means a lot."

~(^^^)~

_**A/N**__**: **__*sigh* Tis not the longest of chapters, but at least I was quicker this time! *torches and pitchforks avoided* Thanks for reading! :D_


	10. Questioning

_**A/N**__**: **__Gah, sorry I took a bit longer with this chapter (*shot* I'm always apologizing). Final exams killed my soul for the past two weeks, but anyway, GLAD THAT'S OVER! Let's check in with the One Piece world now, shall we?_

_Italics = flashback/memory_

~(^^^)~

Zoro awoke to the sounds of heavy footsteps and raised voices, a commotion he was all too used to. Clearly, a Marine ship could be just as loud and obnoxious as the _Sunny_. He groaned and tried to reach up to rub his temples, but scowled as he realized his hands were still cuffed. His arms were extremely sore now from being twisted behind him, and his back was stiff from sleeping slumped up against the wall. Not to mention he was hungry as hell. An overall great start to the morning.

Judging by the intensity of the light shining in through the window, he'd slept fairly late into the day, and he found himself wondering how long it was going to take to get to this prison place. He had thought being captured would be at least a _little_ entertaining, but his patience was wearing down, and he began to speculate if it was possible to eat his way out of the cell.

The steel bars looked thin enough. He figured it would only take a few chomps to bite through one of them, and if he couldn't do that, a nice headbutt would loosen them the rest of the way. Then he could just whittle away at the steel somehow to sharpen it and he'd be able to cut off the damn handcuffs, use the sharpened bar as a spear, take out a few Marines, find his swords, and get the hell out of there. Easy enough. And it would be much more exciting than staring at four gray walls all day.

Closing his eyes, he focused on finding the steel's weak spot. He sat in silence for a few minutes until he had pinpointed the exact location at which to strike the bars. With a flash of determination, he opened his eyes, but the intensity of the moment was soon lost as his stomach growled loudly.

Zoro frowned. His teeth were definitely strong enough, he knew. He just hoped the bars tasted good. If they did, he'd contemplate actually eating them. He worked better on a full stomach anyway.

_Dammit, I'm turning into Luffy here,_ he thought and shot an accusatory glare at the bars as punishment for their potential tastiness.

Suddenly, he froze warily as he realized the ship had stopped moving.

He could hear various orders being called out outside the room, but aside from that, the racket of earlier had ceased entirely. Suspicious, he felt himself itching for his swords as he stared intently at the door.

Something was going to happen; he knew it. And sure enough, a minute later, loud footsteps were heard approaching from the hallway.

He smirked. So they'd finally come for him. Looked like his teeth wouldn't be getting a workout after all.

A key clicked loudly in the lock, and he watched as the heavy door swung open slowly.

Smoker, followed by two subordinates, entered the room, twirling a set of keys casually around his finger.

"Rise and shine, Roronoa," Smoker sneered, fixing the swordsman with his hard glare. "Ready for the real hell to start?"

Zoro shrugged. "Can't be worse than this. Just lookin' at your face is torture enough."

The commodore scowled, ignoring the snide remark. "None of you Straw Hats ever take anything seriously. It's time you got some sense knocked into you."

Another shrug, followed by a yawn, from Zoro. "Sure. You gonna let me out of here or what?"

Handing the keys off to one of his subordinates, Smoker nodded, signaling to open the cell. He looked on as the Marine unlocked the door and led the unenthusiastic swordsman out.

He frowned, continuing to eye Zoro closely.

Just what did Tashigi see in this man?

He was rude, lazy, and clearly had no common sense or values. He was a pirate after all. Yet, she had stood up for him with all her strength. Something had happened during her time with the Straw Hats to make her betray not only Smoker, but herself, her idea of justice. He just didn't know what.

Fierce eyes still trained on Zoro, he removed his cigars from his mouth to utter a brief, "Let's go," before turning on his heel to stride out of the room into the hallway. The two Marines followed, one on either side of Zoro, each keeping a firm grip on one of his arms.

Smoker let the door slam shut behind them and began walking, leading the way down the brightly lit corridor.

He scowled upon hearing the swordsman mumble a sarcastic, "You don't gotta hold my hand, y'know," to the Marines, but continued on, passing several large steel doors along the way before making a right turn down another hallway of similar design.

Smoker continued leading them through the hall for a few minutes before stopping in front of what appeared to be an elevator. Pressing the up button, he glanced back at his prisoner, but the marimo was staring fixedly at the ground.

Several more seconds passed, and the elevator doors swung open. The four walked in, Zoro eyeing the interior suspiciously, before the doors closed once more, leaving them in silence as the elevator began moving upwards.

The confined quarters soon filled with smoke, and Zoro glared over at the source of the pollution, clearing his throat pointedly.

However, Smoker's face remained emotionless. "Hold your breath, swordsman, no need to be rude," he growled.

The elevator came to a halt and the doors opened, Smoker stepping out first into a much shorter hallway with a slight incline leading up to an imposing pair of metal doors, emblazoned with the Marine insignia. Several men who had been ambling about in the hall rushed to open the doors, saluting as the commodore approached.

With the opening of the doors, blinding sunlight filled the corridor, and Zoro had to blink several times to adjust as he was led out onto the deck of the ship, the ocean breeze clearing the smoky haze that had accompanied his captor.

They had obviously been planning for his release from the cell. The deck, which was easily three times the size of _Sunny_'s, was lined on either side with long rows of armed Marines, clearing a runway for him to walk through. He smirked. Were they really that scared of him?

However, his smirk soon dissipated as he noticed for the first time, the location of his arrival.

The ship had apparently stopped……..in the middle of the ocean?

They had dropped anchor all right, but there was absolutely nothing around as far as the eye could see.

Zoro looked back and forth on either side of the ship, but nothing changed; the horizon was completely flat. Where the hell were they?

"Oi, what is this? You gonna drop me overboard or something?" he called to Smoker, who had continued walking through the lines of Marines unperturbed.

Smoker stopped, glancing back over his shoulder.

"I'm not goin' anywhere unless you tell me what the hell's goin' on! If you're gonna kill me, fine, but I'd at least like to know about it first!" Zoro said, waiting for an answer.

Smoker smirked, which did nothing to ease Zoro's nerves, and merely beckoned the Marines to continue leading him across the deck. Rather roughly, they shoved him forward, forcing him to catch up to Smoker, who by that time had made his way to the side of the ship.

It was then that Zoro noticed a wooden ramp had been lowered down from the deck onto a random floating dock below, quite the out-of-place object to be found in the middle of the sea.

Nodding to the subordinates keeping careful watch on either side, Smoker stepped onto the ramp and made his way down onto the dock, Zoro and his escorts following closely behind, much to the swordsman's discomfort.

Once on the dock, he braced himself, ready to be tossed into the ocean or shot at from above, but none such violence came. In fact, to Zoro's surprise, Smoker still appeared to be paying him no attention. Zoro raised an eyebrow upon seeing the commodore approach a small keypad attached to a metal pole rising up from the floor beneath them. He pressed a few buttons on the touch screen before removing one of his gloves to scan his hand as well, which caused a female electronic voice to state Smoker's name, rank, and several other stats, eventually ending in a pleasant, "Welcome to Solomar. Your entry will be granted shortly."

_…The hell? Security? This can't be the prison. What's going----?_

But Zoro's confused thoughts were soon cut off by a low rumbling sound coming from underneath the water. Frantically, he glanced around at the Marines, but, again, they were still standing as calm as could be, Smoker with a small smirk on his face as he looked out at the ocean before him.

The noise continued to grow louder and louder, and Zoro thought he could hear an almost mechanical screeching accompanying the sounds of the now-crashing waves. His eyes widened as he began to see the shape of a massive dark object looming below the surface.

And just like that, the surface of the water erupted as a huge metal block of a building shot up out of the waves, water cascading down its sides. It continued to rise out of the ocean for at least a minute before mechanical clamps slid out from its base and attached to the dock with a loud _clunk_, securing it to the rest of the building and creating a walkway leading to what appeared to be an entryway.

Zoro could do nothing but gape at the edifice that had just risen from the sea before him.

It was at least ten stories tall, rising far above the Marine ship still anchored behind them, stretching about twice the length of the vessel as well. Barred windows lined the building, the Marine emblem clearly carved into the concrete siding under each. The entire structure was encrusted with barnacles, as if it rarely rose above sea level, giving its already gray appearance an even more disagreeable facade.

But what caught Zoro's eye the most was the large stained glass window located above the entrance. It was shaped like a sun, six rectangular rays branching off from it; however, it appeared to be untouched in contrast with the rugged look of the rest of the building. In fact, it not only seemed brand-new, but almost……alive, its color changing from red to orange to yellow and back again with each second Zoro stared.

Suddenly, Zoro felt himself being pushed forward once more by the Marines holding him, and he could no nothing but follow Smoker up to the entrance, a simple metal door with the words, "Solomar: Ward One" etched into it. The door slid open heavily, revealing a small bare room with seawater dripping from the ceiling and walls. Smoker led the way into the room, approaching another metal door of similar fashion at the other end.

He pressed a few buttons on a keypad located to the left of the door, and Zoro could only glance back outside briefly before the door behind them slid shut again, leaving them in dimly lit silence, dripping water the only sound.

It was only a few seconds, however, before the door in front of them opened as well, and Smoker stepped through, Zoro and the Marines close behind.

_What the----?_

Zoro's eyes widened as he stared in disbelief at his new surroundings.

Gone was the otherworldly, weathered feel of the building's exterior. Instead, the group had entered at the far end of a sprawling, modern-looking lobby that was bustling with activity. Men and women dressed in Marine uniforms were buzzing about everywhere, clearly preoccupied with their work, as they took no notice to the four that had just entered. The ceiling of the lobby rose up impressively to what Zoro assumed was the top of the building far above, and there were two large sets of white marble staircases that lined either side of the room, each zigzagging to the top floor.

The rest of the room was entirely blue from top to bottom, with large pillars standing sentinel over lower-ceiling waiting areas that lined the outer edges of the atrium outside what appeared to be offices of some sort, judging by the bronze nameplates that labeled each door.

Smoker nodded for them to start walking again, and began leading them forward once more. Passing between the two staircases, they walked by more waiting areas, each of which were marked by various television monitors hanging from the ceiling above the seating arrangements, flashing different schedules and room assignment information that Zoro didn't understand.

He frowned, however, as something else caught his attention. They were approaching a large circular desk station, with countertops that branched off into six individual workstations, each equipped with a computer and a uniformed official to staff it.

But what was strangest of all was the eerie changing light that was mysteriously cast upon it, clearly marking it as the focal point of the expansive reception area.

Furrowing his brow, Zoro glanced behind him but soon raised his eyebrows once more as he realized that the light was coming from the stained glass window on the wall far above. Somehow, its light was cast perfectly onto what he now noticed was the identically shaped reception desk, creating the illusion of a rising sun reflected on a vast ocean of blue below.

Still staring at his mysterious surroundings, he barely registered that they had reached the actual desk and stopped walking.

Watching the employees hurrying by, he felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up.

Something was off about this place. It was alarming in its perfection, as if he were checking into a fancy hotel rather than being taken to prison. Not to mention the fact that it had risen out of the freaking ocean with the push of a button. He knew the World Government was crazy, but this was a little much. And he couldn't shove off the concern that his crew would have quite a lot of trouble finding him.

_Dammit, Tashigi, you'd better know the coordinates for this place,_ he thought, then cursed under his breath.

He'd been doing so well. He hadn't thought about her once in over twenty-four hours.

He just had to keep reminding himself that she was the one who'd gotten him into this mess, especially now that he'd actually arrived at this "prison".

He had only reminded himself three times, however, before Smoker's gruff voice interrupted his thoughts and he looked up.

"…..bringing his swords in shortly."

Zoro only heard the end of his sentence, but the mention of his swords caught his attention nonetheless. Smoker was standing in front of one of the workstations, conversing with a secretary dressed in Marine uniform who was busily typing information into her computer.

Finishing, she nodded and looked up with a grin, however, the orange glow of the light from above made her enthusiasm seem all the more malicious.

"Alright, Commodore Smoker, now are you interested in having him executed right away, or would you like me to run through the other options? We'll have to run a search on him either way, but I suppose, because he's such a high profile criminal, we could also leave his fate up to him as well."

At this, Zoro felt his heart knock in his chest as both Smoker and the secretary turned to look at him simultaneously, studying him rather intensely.

He fixed Smoker with a wary glance, watching as the commodore mulled things over in his head before turning back to the secretary and replying, "Let's let him decide. I'm interested to see if he's as stupid as he seems."

"Decide what?" Zoro blurted out, looking back and forth between the two suspicious characters in front of him.

The woman let out a high-pitched chuckle. "Very well. Not to worry, Roronoa Zoro, you need only answer a simple question."

The swordsman narrowed his eyes. "What kind of question? You didn't bring me here to answer riddles."

"Oh no, no need to be concerned! One question and we'll let you be on your way," the woman replied, then sat forward casually, resting her elbows on the desktop in front of her. "Now choose one, Roronoa Zoro," and she smirked. "The sun or the sea?"

~~(^^^)~~

Tashigi sighed, poking at her breakfast listlessly, feeling more and more anxious as the morning went on. They were only an hour or so behind Smoker. There was still a chance they could reach him before he got to the prison. But she couldn't help but feel more than a little worried, and with another jab at her food, she sighed again.

"Why so glum, Tashigi-san?" Sanji's voice floated over to her as he waltzed across the kitchen to set down a fresh plate of sausage, which Luffy quickly snatched up from across the table, sparking a chaotic brawl between the other boys, which was eventually cut short by Nami's fist.

Sanji scowled and muttered, "Bunch of shitty barbarians," before turning his attention back to Tashigi. "You really should eat! I prepared this dish with extra energy supplements as well as special vitamins to enhance your wondrous complexion, my sweet! That way you'll be able to storm the Marine base with the strength of a beautiful warrior maiden while still looking absolutely gorgeous at the same time~~!"

A small sweatdrop formed on the side of her face, but she smiled. "Thank you, Sanji," she replied, taking a bite.

"Haaaaa~~!" Sanji exclaimed. "Tashigi's stunning even when she's still slightly apprehensive about breaking into a prison!" And he twirled back over to the stove to prepare more food.

Robin's soft chuckle sounded as she approached the table too, cup of steaming coffee in hand. She glanced over at the other six with a smile before pulling up a chair to sit across from Tashigi at the long table.

"You'll only drive yourself crazy by worrying so much. And it would definitely be in our best interest for you to remain sane." Robin mused, and then giggled again as Luffy dove onto the table in an attempt to steal Franky's plate, but missed, vacuuming up Chopper's instead, causing the little reindeer to start pawing at Luffy's head frantically with his hooves as he screamed, "You meanie!"

Tashigi laughed too, giving Robin a small smile. "I know. I just wish I knew more about this place so we could come up with a better plan. I'm not even sure if the buildings will be accessible from the water! And what if I have the coordinates wrong? I don't----!"

"Relax!" Nami said, rolling her eyes with an exasperated grin as she walked past with her empty plate. "We'll figure it out when we get there! Besides, you're the one who should be the _least_ worried. You'll have unquestioned access to anywhere in the facility!"

"Not if Commodore Smoker gets there ahead of us…." she mumbled.

The navigator sighed, knocking her lightly on the head with her fist. "Lighten up, jeez!" And she walked over to the eagerly-awaiting Sanji.

Tashigi huffed out a breath, furrowing her brow as she rubbed the spot where Nami had whacked her.

She tried to force herself to relax. After all, they could do little until they surveyed the surroundings first. Her rational side knew that, yet she couldn't quite quell the irrational fear that was rising within her.

It was something that Smoker had told her a while back that had her perturbed.

What had he meant?

~~(^^^)~~

_"What do you mean? They let the prisoner decide whether they live or die?" Tashigi asked._

_Smoker blew out a cloud of smoke, staring out the window of his office. "That's what I've heard. They like to mess with their minds a bit apparently. It's just another way for the Government to escape blame if their motives are questioned. They just say the prisoner chose his own fate and everything works out. It's a bunch of bullshit if you ask me."_

_She nodded. "That's for sure. But how do they get the prisoner to agree to such questioning? Surely they wouldn't just go along with it."_

_The commodore shrugged, turning back to face her. "Don't ask me how Solomar works. I'll never make sense of that place." He sighed, running a hand through his hair before continuing. "They ask them to choose between the sun and the sea. It's a trick. No matter what they answer, it ends badly for them."_

_Tashigi frowned. "The sun or the sea? But that doesn't even make sense! How does that relate to anything?"_

_Again, Smoker shrugged. "Like I said, don't ask me how Solomar works," he said, clearly agitated by the very mention of its name. "But if I were a prisoner, I'd choose the sun……" _

_And with that, he turned to walk out of the room. "I wouldn't worry about it, Tashigi. We'll make sure we never have to use that place," he said as he strode past her._

_She nodded and started to follow him out. "Right," she agreed._

_However, she couldn't help but feel that he wasn't telling her everything…._

~~(^^^)~~

_**A/N**__**: **__Ooooooh things are gettin' interesting now! =P Finally, Zoro's at the prison! ^^; Things will hopefully make more sense next chapter. I was trying to make Solomar seem as shady as possible…..hopefully I did okay with that……. _…._…. I decided to be crafty and name the prison "Solomar" cuz "Sol o mar" means "Sun or sea" in Spanish…ohohoho crafty indeed…._

_AND SPEAKING OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES! Just wanted to send a shout-out to __**emildrago **__who's currently translating this story for an Italian fanfiction website called EFP! Thank you again for translating it! I'm really glad you liked it that much! =P_

_Until next time! Thanks for reading!_


	11. Decisions

_**A/N**__**: **__OH MY GOD! WHAT IS THE WORLD COMING TO? I'M….I'M ACTUALLY UPDATING! *earthquakes, tornadoes, tsunamis across the planet* Gahhhh…so yeah…art school is actually ridiculous. I loooove it so much, but I've got more work than you can ever IMAGINE. But I __**finally **__(and I mean finally...jeez) found time to update! Hah. Figures it took me till winter break. So I'll just let you get reading. You people have been waiting long enough._

_(Also, a quick special thanks to my friend __**HopeMoon**__ on deviantART who reminded me to freakin' update this hahaaa. This chapter's for you, Cookie-chwan~!)_

~(^^^)~

"Well, which?" the secretary asked again, still staring at Zoro with uncomfortable pleasure, the light from the colored window above casting strange shadows across her face. "The sun or the sea?"

Zoro felt a bead of sweat trickle down the back of his neck, and he narrowed his eyes at the woman, still not understanding the task before him. It seemed to be merely a simple question, but for some reason, his instincts were telling him to get the hell out of there, and fast.

"Dammit, choose, swordsman! We don't have all day!" Smoker snarled, irritated with Zoro's indecision.

However, said-swordsman ignored the angry commodore, surveying his options for escape. Glancing around at the sprawling lobby, he could see that the two winding staircases looked promising. Although, there were sure to be more Marines at the top and, without his swords, he wouldn't be able to put up much of a fight. Not to mention the offices along the sides of the room were sure to house even more Marine officials.

He supposed he could always go out the way he came. Two simple headbutts and the Marines holding him would go down, and unlike the shit-cook, he had no problem taking out the creepy secretary woman, but that still left that annoying Smoker. It'd be hard to get rid of the smoky bastard.

_And come to think of it….where __**did**__ we come in? _Zoro thought with a frown as he scanned the room once more, looking around the ceiling for a familiar-looking door.

_Damn,_ _looks like I'm stuck for the time being_, he admitted with a sigh.

And so, the only way out was to answer.

"The sea," he stated confidently, turning back to face the two with a smirk.

Smoker's eyes flashed, teeth clenching down hard on his cigars.

Surely, this guy wasn't _that_ stupid. He'd had to have heard of this place before. So why the hell would he be dumb enough to choose-?

"You sure about that, Roronoa?" Smoker growled, glaring at him conspicuously.

But Zoro only shot an almost amused glance at the commodore before muttering, "'Course I'm sure. I'm a pirate, right? I'll always choose the sea."

Staring at the clearly certain swordsman, Smoker huffed out a breath. "You fool….you have no idea what you've just done," he spat out, turning back to the secretary with a sneer.

Zoro shrugged. "You're right, I don't," and, eyeing the agitated commodore, he grinned. "Care to enlighten me or somethin'?"

Smoker clenched his fists, and, for a moment, their escape from Rain Dinners flashed through his mind again….

…..

"_Roronoa!...Why did you save me?"_

"_I was following the captain's orders. Don't think you have to thank me or anything. It was just one of his whims. Forget about it."_

...

He'd let them go. Just that once, he'd let those ever-persistent Straw Hats get away. Clearly, his debt was repaid; they were enemies once more.

And abiding by Zoro's advice, he chose to forget.

"You heard him. The sea," the commodore said with a curt nod.

The secretary nodded as well and began pleasantly typing away at her computer. "I'll send a request to the warden. We weren't scheduled to run another Cleansing for at least a week, but I'm sure we can make an exception for _you_, Roronoa Zoro," she said, glancing at him with a friendly grin before picking up a nearby Den Den Mushi and speaking into it.

"An escort is needed at the front desk." The transponder snail broadcasted her voice across the lobby from several speakers along the walls, and, within seconds, two new Marines arrived with a salute to replace the pair already holding him.

"Take him to Sector Three of the Cleansing Ward, Cell 396. And once his swords are brought in, have them locked in the cell next to him," the woman instructed, looking up as she finished her typing. A wave of red light danced over her face and she chuckled. "Make sure the area is clear too. We'll be drawing a private bath for him this afternoon…."

And with that, the soldiers nodded and shoved Zoro to the right, taking him by the arms and leading him away from the front desk towards an imposing metal door marked with a large 'Cleansing' sign.

Smoker blew out a breath of smoke as he watched the man disappear through the doors.

Another success story for the great Commodore Smoker. And how easy it had been too. Too easy.

He wasn't even a prisoner, yet he couldn't help but feel unsettled.

Normally, big captures like this gave him pride, a sense of accomplishment that gave him reason to believe he'd just made the world a little bit safer. Even his falsely glorified promotion after Crocodile's defeat had left him at ease knowing the sandy son of a bitch was locked up.

But today….

"Commodore Smoker," the secretary's voice brought him back.

"Hnn?" he grunted, refocusing his attention on the woman.

"The warden would like to speak with you now," she smiled up at him. "The elevators are behind me at the far end of the lobby. The warden's office is on a specially-marked floor; you can't miss it!"

He blinked at her as her grin faltered. Clearly, he was dismissed. With a nod, he began making his way to the elevators, sending Zoro's previous escorts back to the ship with a mere flick of his hand.

He'd wanted to have a chat with the warden. And he preferred that he do it alone.

~~(^^^)~~

Zoro frowned as he was led through a bland, brightly lit hallway, hearing the heavy doors to the lobby clunk shut behind him.

At the end of the short hallway was yet another pair of metal doors.

_How original_, he thought, scowling at the white concrete walls with distaste.

One of the Marines chuckled as they reached the doors, removing a glove to scan his hand on the security checkpoint.

"You sure picked well, Roronoa. Somethin' tells me you're gonna _love_ it here," he said with a knowing smirk.

Zoro's other escort let out an ominous chuckle as well as the doors slid open, revealing a small, wet room similar to the one through which he'd first entered.

Zoro merely rolled his eyes and stepped forward into the dim room, approaching the entryway on the other end.

Being captured was becoming less and less of the interesting venture he'd hoped and more of a repetitive bore than anything. He let out a sigh as he watched the doors slide open past his face and found himself growing increasingly restless for Luffy and the others to make their grand entrance and liven things up.

However, he furrowed his brow upon seeing that the doors had opened onto another floating dock.

_The hell?_ he thought, the Marines pushing him forward. _Didn't we come in this way?_

But Smoker's ship was nowhere to be seen. Just the vast ocean spread out before him.

_Now_ were they planning to throw him in? He _had_ chosen the sea after all.

He figured he could still swim even with his hands cuffed. It'd probably be the most exciting thing to happen to him all day too. Maybe he could swim all the way to the _Sunny_ and escape. Wouldn't even _need_ a rescue party to come get him. Plus it would take care of his daily training.

Unless he actually _did _drown like they were most likely hoping. Then that would just suck.

Suddenly, the water started churning in front of him, interrupting his musings. Zoro was oblivious to the fact that the Marines had pressed several buttons on a raised keypad by the door and he frowned at the familiar looking scene.

Just like before, the ocean seemed to tremble as a gigantic dark shape loomed underneath stretching farther than his eye could see. It got closer and closer to the surface until it finally erupted upward, soaring above him about five or so stories before grinding to a halt at the end of the dock.

Before him loomed yet another huge building, similar in make to the first yet circular and easily three times the size. Another simple door was the only means of entrance into this new building, the dock connecting the building from where they'd just come to the new one.

The Marines gave him a light shove and they began walking him towards the door. As they got closer, Zoro noticed a small sign etched into the façade of the building that read, "Cleansing Ward". Guess he'd finally get to find out what all they hype was about. He also noticed that there were no windows anywhere on the building. Just straight, cold steel.

_This place is just getting weirder by the second, _he thought, eyeing the structure suspiciously as he stalked up to the door, one of the Marines scanning his badge at a touchpad on the wall, successfully opening the door. He was led into yet another small in-between drainage room (by this time, he was expecting it), the only sound dripping water as they walked across to the other door and scanned their way in.

He heard the doors slide shut heavily behind him, extinguishing the outside light, but it barely registered in his mind when he gazed upon the sight before him.

They were standing on a torch-lit balcony that encircled the entire building, but it was so large that its whole circumference was not visible in the dim light. It had a low ceiling with small pillars attached to the railing, but Zoro could tell that the actual height of the building rose much higher judging by its outside appearance. Despite the weak lighting, he could just make out an impressively large staircase directly across from them on the other side of the balcony that plummeted down into darkness but other than that, there appeared to be no means of getting down.

He smirked when the two Marines started walking him down the balcony hallway, the torches attached to the pillars casting eerie shadows on the walls as they moved.

"Of course we'd be going down there," he mumbled out loud, chuckling softly as one of the soldiers tightened his grip on his arm in warning.

They passed several other doors standing sentinel along the wall but the Marines paid them no mind. It took them about two minutes to walk all the way to the other side at which point Zoro was finally able to see the entirety of the interior. They were standing at the top of the staircase, its austere industriousness anything but grand.

Peering down it, it became clear that it stretched down another five stories, making, in turn, about half the building under sea level.

Nodding at each other, the Marines began leading Zoro down the staircase into the abyss. As they walked, lights began to come on below, illuminating the lower level.

It was circular, as was the rest of the building, but instead of a balcony surrounding the perimeter, there were cells instead. They lined every inch of the wall, even going behind and underneath the large stairway.

Zoro wasn't surprised by the look of it. Typical prison, that was all. But what had him frowning was the huge circular…..drain in the center of the floor at the foot of the stairs. The holes were easily ten feet wide each, though they were closed over now with some kind of metal.

_But why would they need to be open in the first place?_ Zoro thought, brow creasing. He noticed that there were also large grates on the walls above the cells, some of them slowly dripping water.

Their footsteps echoed on the concrete floor as they stepped down off the staircase. By this time, the entire lower level was dimly lit. They turned to the left, leading Zoro across the cavernous room to the row of cells, stepping carefully over the drain as they crossed. Once there, they continued walking down the line, passing countless barred cells, each looking suspiciously damp and cold.

Finally, the soldiers stopped him in front of one of them, a cell labeled 396 as directed. It was almost completely across the room from the stairway. Zoro scoffed. They must have been taking extra precautions that he wouldn't escape.

That said however, he narrowed his eyes as the Marine on his right reached over with a key to unlock his handcuffs.

"Escaping won't be an issue anymore so we'll just take these back," he heard the man say, his low voice uncomfortably close to Zoro's ear.

The other of his escorts unlocked the door with a set of keys on his belt loop, sliding it open like a cage door before shoving Zoro inside. Sneering as Zoro turned to glare at him, the Marine slid the door shut once more and locked it.

Just then, footsteps were heard running across the room from the stairs and shortly after, another Marine came jogging up to them, carrying Zoro's swords rather haphazardly. With a nod to the other two, he walked over to the cell to the right of Zoro's, unlocking it and throwing them in. Zoro winced upon hearing them clatter to the ground.

"Could you be more careful with those?" he growled, though he knew it was useless at this point. Funny that his swords were being held captive just like their master.

With one last scornful look at the trapped swordsman, the three soldiers turned away, one pulling a Baby Den Den Mushi out of his pocket and speaking into it.

"Prisoner and his katana secure," he heard him say, "Area secure as well. Cleansing can begin whenever you're ready, Warden."

The reply that came was too muffled for him to make it out as they hurriedly left Zoro in the dark. Eventually, he heard the main door from where they'd come clang open and close once more, its noise echoing throughout the vast space, leaving him truly alone.

He sighed. "Another cell, huh?" he muttered, glancing around. It was about the same size as the one on Smoker's ship but the dampness and cold made it significantly more unpleasant.

Sitting down, he leaned against the wall, stretching his arms out and rubbing his wrists where the handcuffs had chafed.

Something else was bothering him as well but he couldn't quite place what it was. And so he sat for a minute in silence, listening to the suspicious dripping of water coming from the ceiling and wincing as a freezing droplet hit him on the back of his head, slowly snaking its way down his neck.

Suddenly, realization dawned on him. It was _too_ silent in this place. He couldn't hear any other prisoners in the surrounding cells. He hadn't heard any calling out when he'd walked in as prisoners usually did, and there were none making noises now.

"So either I'm the only one in here, or everyone else is dead," he mused aloud to himself, looking through the bars but seeing no signs of movement from anywhere.

He frowned. He _had_ been bored with the typical captive experience he'd had so far, but now this was just getting a little creepy. Not to mention he was pissed with the way that damn Marine had treated his swords.

_Alright, Luffy. You can show up n-._

_ CLUNK!_

Zoro's head snapped around as he felt the building literally shift under him. Without a moment's notice, the walls and everything around him started shaking as if a huge earthquake was raking through. The lights began flickering and it took him a minute to realize that the floor was moving too, giving him the stomach-dropping feeling of an elevator descending at high speed. The building shifted violently once more, causing Zoro to lose balance and fall over, cheek impacting with the vibrating floor.

In disbelief, he pushed himself up to his elbows.

_They're moving the building back underwater,_ he realized incredulously, twitching as more water droplets fell onto him from the ceiling with each creak of the movement.

Finally, after a minute, everything ground to a halt and the cell was plunged into silence once more.

"Damn," Zoro muttered to no one in particular, sitting up and rubbing his sore cheek absently.

His situation just kept getting more and more interesting, didn't it.

~~(^^^)~~

"I'm boooored! When are we gonna get there, Nami?" Luffy groaned pitifully as he flopped down onto the deck in front of the navigator's lawn chair.

The whining was cranked up to surround sound as Usopp chimed in from the other side. "Yeah, come on, Nami. We want some excitement."

She scoffed, peering down at them from overtop her magazine. "Oh, that's rich coming from you, Usopp. We'll get there when we get there! We're going as fast as we can, and according to our coordinates, we're getting close. Besides, if you're that bored, maybe you should concentrate on actually getting serious and preparing for battle."

And with that, Usopp leaped up from the deck, heroically jerking his thumb to his chest. "Yoooosh, she's right. After all, the great Captain Usopp-sama is always ready for action!"

"Yeahhhhh!" Luffy echoed, rushing to Usopp's side.

The two then proceeded to throw their arms around each other's shoulders and march around the deck singing a rousing rendition of, "_We're gonna rescue Zoro! We're gonna rescue Zoro! We're gonna rescue Zoro's ass! Because he can't do it himself! Yeah!_"

Nami merely sighed at the boys' antics. She looked around for someone she could shoot an exasperated eyeroll at, but upon finding herself alone with the two rowdy vocalists, she sat back, rolling her eyes at her magazine instead before going back to reading.

However, not five minutes had passed before she was checking the Log again, making sure the ship was still headed in the direction of the coordinates. It was strange. They should have been getting close, yet the weather had been oddly calm. Usually when approaching an island, anything from a snow shower to a full-blown tsunami was to be expected, especially in this part of the Grand Line, making the stable weather patterns ironically unsettling.

Unable to sit still, Nami set her magazine down and stood up, shaking her head as she walked past Usopp and Luffy (who had moved on to an admittedly catchy chorus along the lines of, "_Zoro's an idiot 'cause he got caught._")

Making her way to the front of the ship, Nami climbed the stairs to the upper deck, joining Franky at the wheel.

"Hey, Girlie. We still on course?" Franky asked, smirking as he glanced down at the navigator over his sunglasses.

Nami quirked an eyebrow at the nickname, but decided not to object. "Yeah. We're about a mile away, I'd say. But….I haven't seen an island, have you?"

The cyborg shook his head. "Nope. You sure the Marine girl got the coordinates right? I mean, she's never even been to the place before."

Nami shrugged, but furrowed her brow nonetheless. "For now, we'll just go where she told us. If it's wrong, then we'll figure out what to do when the time comes."

The pair lapsed into silence, eyes fixed on the empty horizon ahead.

Suddenly, Sanji's voice began blaring across the ship from the loud speaker. "Oi, everyone get out here! There's a Marine ship dead ahead!"

Franky and Nami turned to see Sanji hanging out a window of the crow's nest, pointing at the ocean in front of them. He ducked back through the window and soon reappeared climbing down the ladder to the deck below.

Joining Nami and Franky at the helm, he gestured ahead towards the horizon. "See it? Way out there?"

It took a minute of squinting, but eventually the small form of a ship appeared silhouetted against the sky.

By that time, the others had gathered as well, gazing at the still distant sight.

Nami sighed, lips twitching up into a humorless smile. "Well, I guess Tashigi got the coordinates right. That's our destination."

Tashigi nodded, stepping to the front of the group to stand beside the navigator. "And that's Smoker's ship too."

"How can you tell? It's still so far away?" Franky asked, removing his sunglasses to take a closer look.

"She's right. I can smell the smoke," Chopper said from his perch on Usopp's shoulders. "It smells like you did when you first came, Tashigi, so I'm sure of it," he added with a sweatdrop.

Tashigi sweatdropped as well, turning back to face the horizon once more. However, after a second, she frowned.

Smoker's ship was definitely anchored but….at what island?

The rest of the crew soon joined in her confusion as it became clear that the Marine vessel was the only thing disrupting the horizon line. No large green island mass jutting out from the ocean, no rocky reefs, no nothing. Just the imposing form of the ship.

"Tashigiiiii, where's the island?" Luffy whined, hopping onto _Sunny_'s head to peer out towards the obstacle, feet anxiously tapping. He turned around to face her with a pout on his lips. "I can't even smell any meat."

Nami scowled. "That's beside the point, Luffy." She brushed her bangs out of her face in agitation as she too moved forward for a closer look. "Are you _positive_ these were the correct coordinates? Something doesn't feel right about this," she added, fixing a suspicious glance on Tashigi.

But Tashigi looked just as confused as the rest of them, biting her lip anxiously.

"I'm sure these are the coordinates! I know they are, Smoker's told me. But…it doesn't make sense. There's nothing-."

Just then, a splashing sound broke the surface of the water, and the crew turned to see a small submarine vessel emblazoned with the Navy insignia emerging from the depths next to the commodore's ship. It docked beside it, and the top hatch opened to let two Marine grunts out before the hatch closed and the submarine submerged once more.

They all looked on as the Marines climbed a ladder back onto the ship.

The crew stared for a minute until Nami grinned, tapping her fingers together. "Well then, I guess this _is_ the right place. And we know our way of entry too. How convenient! Lay anchor, guys! Now for that treasure…"

Usopp eyed her warily, quickly turning to complain about the situation to Luffy, but groaned upon seeing that the captain was already too far gone, bouncing up and down with excitement and screaming, "Submarine, submarine!"

Tashigi looked worried, however, and the crew's smirking and excitement were not exactly comforting. "But how are we going to get down there? We don't even have a-!"

She stopped mid-sentence upon seeing Franky give her a thumbs up and Robin chuckle.

"Don't worry, Marine-sis! I'll get the Shark ready!"

She furrowed her brow for a moment then with a sigh, she smiled. _Oh right. These are the Straw Hats after all._

~(^^^)~

The building had finally stopped shaking, and Smoker sneered as he eyed the golden plaque on the dark wooden door in front of him.

He had arrived at the warden's office, but they couldn't have waited one damn minute until he had actually gotten there first before lowering the building now could they.

No sooner had he raised his fist to knock then the door opened unexpectedly, a Marine soldier beckoning him to come in.

With a nod, he stepped forward and was immediately overcome by a wall of heat, the room's humidity extremely uncomfortable.

He noted the high, sky-painted ceiling with narrowed eyes, loosening his collar as he walked across the room. Small leafless baobab trees and other grassy plants lined the walls, giving the illusion of an African savanna. At the end opposite the door sat an imposing desk made of bamboo and behind it a large throne-like chair of similar make. Its back was facing him.

"Authentic as ever, Fusa-san. But I suppose the warden of this place can decorate however they want," he growled, beginning to sweat under the staggering heat.

Slowly, the chair swiveled to face him.

The figure sitting in it chuckled, fixing Smoker with intelligent eyes.

"Ah, Commodore Smoker. Good work bringing Roronoa Zoro here. A Supernova, how impressive. And the rest of the Straw Hats following of course. Things are bound to get interesting."

Smoker scoffed. "I'm surprised you remembered my name what with the establishment you run here. Erasing mistakes and brainwashing. How admirable."

Ignoring his comment, the warden leaned forward with a smirk, letting out a trumpeting laugh. "Purupurupuru~~! Silly Smoker…you should know that I never forget anything."

And grinning, Warden Fusa motioned for him to have a seat across from her.

~~(^^^)~~

_**A/N**__**: **__ So what do you think? Am I the worst updater in the history of updaters or what? Hehe on second thought, don't answer that. I seriously will apologize though for neglecting this story, but hopefully everyone understands that my schedule's been kinda crazy. As to when I'll update next? I'm gonna try to get at least one more chapter out while I'm home for break. ^^; So yeah, we'll have to see. Thanks a lot for reading! And Happy Holidays! :D_


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